Cinderella?
by damn.it.to.hell
Summary: Ever since her dad died after remarrying, Mai's life has been awful. Cinderella was her new name, she wasn't aloud to have her say, she wasn't aloud to be the child she is. Then one day the royal family comes and take her away so she can play her part in the prophecy from long ago. The prophecy sends Mai into a world full of ghosts and a group of wonderful people...
1. Chapter 1

AN: This is my new story. It's loosely based on the Cinderella story but with my own odd twist. I hope you like it, and this time, I promise to add a lot of detail and make the chapters longer. The story will also be longer to. We'll just have to wait and see how it turns out.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter One**

I was dragged into the house that morning after I was made to put out the washing. The person leading me was absolutely obnoxious and only cared about herself.

She had beautiful porcelain skin, dark ebony hair, long eyelashes and a ladylike frame that brought an awful lot of jealousy throughout the land. She was admired by many but hated by the rest, including myself. I hate her so much. I hate her so much that I curse the day my father remarried after my mother died. I curse the day that she came into my life, the day my father died and the days that follow.

I curse her, my _'beloved'_ stepsister!

"Keep moving." She yelled. The grip on my arm tightened and I swear for a moment there, that I saw some marks on my arm. When did the _dainty_ little spoiled brat become so strong? If memory serves me right, then she is too weak to even lift a brush to clean up her own room. She is supposed to be a very ill girl who shouldn't be that strong because her illness stops her. So she was lying. Does she even have an illness?

We rounded the corner and entered my house - no. Scratch that, 'their' house. My stepsister dragged me through some more rooms until we reached the parlor (a posh living room which is only used when we have very posh guests). What rich person is coming here? They must be quite important if we are using the parlor.

Stepmonster, I mean _Stepmother _never uses that room even though she likes to surround herself with riches and jewelry to make herself seem special. Even though no one, and by 'no one' I mean myself, believes that she is.

"Cinderella," My stepmother's voice boomed.

I sighed, loudly. "For the last effing time Ayako, my name is Mai. M-A-I. Did you here that? My name is Mai!"

I looked at her face. She went red with frustration. I suppressed a laugh, her face was the same color as her stupid red hair! My stepmother, Ayako, was wearing her best dress and had the necklace my father gave her the day he died. She wore it well, I'll give her that.

"Cinderella," She continued. "I want you to borrow one of my lovely daughter's dresses and I give you permission to wear that awful necklace and bracelet that you always pester me about. If I find out that you have dirtied up the dress you will pay for a new one with your own money."

I nod. Huh, it was going to be a long day. The last time that I wore a nice dress was at the funeral, three years ago when I was thirteen. In a week I will be sixteen. God, where do the years go by?

Ayako hands me a list of chores and tells me to go get ready after I have finished the list. I sigh again and walk out of the room. First on the room was to make sure the front of the house was up to standards.

Very _very _standards! If the plants weren't straight and facing opposite the house, I had to fix them. If there was even a little trace of moss on the pathway, I had to fix it. If the grass was too long and needed trimming, I had to do that. If there was an ugly bug in the garden, I had to shoo it away! You get the idea! Stupidly high standards...

I finished all of the chores at four in the afternoon and then I had to go get ready. Ready for what, I still don't know.

"Masako," I called whilst walking into her room. I shuddered at what I saw. My stepsister was walking around in her underwear and holding different dresses up against her. Makeup brands and products were scattered all over the floor, countless pairs of shoes and accessories all over her double bed and her wardrobe was open - you could see lots of dresses with every color under the sun.

I gulped and walked further in. "Masko," I repeated.

She spun around quickly and made no attempt to cover herself up. I looked away, "I'm here for that dress. I promise I won't mess it up or anything. And if I do, you know that I have to pay for a new one."

I looked back over at Masako and my mouth fell open. She was smiling. Actually smiling! What demon is possessing her!? She walked over to her wardrobe and looked inside. Her eyes skimmed over every dress in there until it fell upon one that I was actually quite fond of. It was a simple dress of a dark red color. But nonetheless, I though it was perfect.

"This one," She said handing it to me. I stood flabbergasted. Masako continued to speak. "I'm letting you wear that one. I see the light in your eyes whenever I decided to wear it. Hey Cindie, when you are finished getting dressed come back in here so that I can do your makeup. You want to look good in front of all the rich guests don't you?"

I nod my head slightly and walk away. I climb the second set of stairs to my room in the attic. My mouth was still open and I quickly closed it. What the hell just happened in there!? Masako... being nice to me? It wasn't possible!

But it had to be...

Odd? _Yes._ Weird? _Yes._ Strange? _Yes._ But that is Masko for you, she's full of surprises, although most of the time they are completely nasty. I just force those thoughts to the back of my mind and push open the door to my room.

I open the window that leads onto the roof and walk over to my bed. Placing the lovely red dress down, I get changed. Soon enough I'm clad in the red dress and wearing a necklace and bracelet. The jewelry that Ayako thought was awful, was a gift from my mother on my tenth birthday. I remember that birthday well. It was just between my parents' friends and ourselves.

I had made cake with my mother earlier that day, peppermint chocolate. It was my favorite at the time, now it just brings back sad memories. Anyway the two of us, mother and I, brought the cake out into the sitting area in the garden where every one of us would have a piece and celebrate late into the night. I loved it back then. When my parents where alive, I didn't want to curse anyone at all.

I could have a peaceful childhood without thinking about how to use a voodoo doll (I haven't figured out how to use one yet).

I sighed again. Oh, the good ol' days! How I miss them so.

"Cindie," I heard someone call. I opened my door and looked down. Stood at the bottom of the stairs was Masako holding a small basket of what I guess to be makeup supplies. "I'm coming up," She said starting to climb.

Leaving the door slightly open, I went and sat on my bed. In no time at all, the two of us were talking again. This time, Masako was doing my makeup. I felt really uncomfortable. The brush she was using for this thing called foundation kept tickling my cheeks and then when she was applying this thing called mascara I squirmed in my seat. I didn't like the feeling at all.

"All done," Masako announced turning me to face her so that she could get a better look at her finished piece of work. I saw the ghost of a smile on her face as she put away her belongings. Why was she being like this? It just felt too strange.

I saw her go to my window and push it open. She then began to climb out but then paused. Turning her head to face me she said "Coming?"

I nodded and followed.

The two of us sat on the roof in silence. It was almost five in the evening and it was beginning to get dark. I turned my body so that I had a view of the village. It was a small village, it was very historic and a beauty. I loved partly because of all the greenery, I just love to climb trees and take care of animals and plants. Up in my attic, I have a few flowers here and there. I find that they just brighten the place up and they smell great. I especially love to smell lavender! (Don't judge me - it has a nice fragrance.)

"Hey Cindie."

I look at Masko, "What is it?"

"Soon, I'm going to be rich and married to the best looking guy in this village. I'm going to woo him over with my feminine charms and soon enough he will love me. I can tell that we're bonded together in some way. I can't wait to meet him..."

"You haven't met him yet? Who is he?" I ask.

Masako smiles, "I haven't met him yet, no. And he's the prince."

"Prince Oliver?" I gasp. The prince is going to be wooed by my stepsister? Pft! I laughing inside. I can't wait to watch what happens, this will be funny.

"Yes, " She answers. " The King and Queen want him to have a bride by the end of the year so they are holding masquerade balls and just normal dances and they are going to parties held by the village residents. My mum is holding a party this evening for it. Maybe we should go down now, I think I heard some people down stairs and I can see some more people coming this way."

I look back out at the village before following Masako. It's gotten quite dark now and there are lights all over, trying to brighten the village up. Without the lights, it woulds look even more beautiful.

I take one more look before climbing back through my window into the attic. Quickly glancing at my mirror as I pass by, I show a sad smile. My brown hair rested on my shoulders, my freckles were visible through the foundation and you could see small bumps and bruises on my legs. Ayako wouldn't be happy if she saw them.

Ignoring that fact, I went down two sets of stairs and moved into the parlor. I was surprised when I first walked in. There was a lot of people sat or stood up holding drinks and chatting. There was a soft piano song playing in the background. Lifting my head up to look at the piano, I sighed. No one was playing it, it was just one of Ayako's records playing.

She never lets me play it. If she wants to hear some piano music then she would put one of her records on. It's such a shame really, I've been told that I am very good at playing and I love to play too. Back in the day, my mother and father would stop what they were doing and come and listen to me play - sometimes even for hours!

"Cinderella," I heard Ayako say. I turned to face her just as she shoved a tray in my hands. "You are to hand these out to guests and thank them for coming. Remember to act happy and use your manners."

"Sure sure," I mumble walking away.

A family of three walk through the door. All of them had pretty blonde hair and deep blue eyes. I smiled and went to them, "Would you like one?"

I show them the contents of the tray and then I scowl. The cakes I had made earlier for myself (now let me repeat that, _myself!_) were being handed out to the guests.

The family all took one each. "Thank you." What must be the mother said. "And who might you be?"

I smile again. "My name is Mai Taniyama but everyone calls me Cinderella or Cindie." I said that through gritted teeth. I still wonder why no one decided to listen to me and still refuse to call me by my real name.

I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder. "Silly child," Someone mutters. I look up to see Ayako. She continued speaking, "Just ignore Cinderella here. She just a little confused right now. You see, she got into a little bit of an accident a while ago and one of the long term affects was memory loss. She awoke to someone talking about a girl called Mai Taniyama and immediately mistook the name for her own."

"Oh, how unfortunate." The mother said smiling sadly at me.

"Of you go Cinderella, finish handing those out would you darling." Ayako said giving me a little push back into the parlor. I bit the side of my cheek and walked away. What was that about? Why did she make up that story? We have the birth certificate to prove who I am, so why create a story and hide who I really am from everyone?

I set the tray down on the piano and sat down on the stool. I traced my fingers across the piano keys and smiled warmly. All these special memories about my parents always come back to me when I play the piano. The memories are what keep me from going insane!

"Hey Mai, or should I call you Cinderella?" One of the people with blonde hair and blue eyes said coming up to me.

I smile again. "You might as well call me Cinderella. No one will believe that Mai is my name in my stupid stepmother goes around telling everyone that it's not. They always believe the adults."

The boy before me smiled back. "I believe you."

Does he really? He seems different, like he's telling the truth. I look at him, "Just call me Cindie. What's your name?"

His smile broadens. "My name is John Brown. Nice to meet you Cindie." John and I shake hands. It looks like the two of us are already becoming friends. Wow, my first friend in ages, about 4 or 5 years actually! There was that young boy with black hair and he always wore black for some reason. He was my friend, or was he? I can't remember.

All I know is that we had a great time when we were younger and now I have a new friend. John Brown.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: This is my new story. It's loosely based on the Cinderella story but with my own odd twist. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, thank you to anyone that reviews, follows or favorites. Oh, and I have decided to make this story longer than 20 chapters, but I can't say how many just yet.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter two**

I got talking with John Brown, the boy with blonde hair and blue eyes. I found out that he moved here recently from a far away place called Australia where they lived ever since he was born. He told me that he is a Catholic and wants to be a priest when he is older. I told him about my life, my real parents, stepmother and sister, all of it.

John was a great listener and he put his own thoughts in here and there. We talked nonstop until Ayako made everyone quiet down.

"I now present to you King Martin and Queen Luella with their son Prince Oliver," Ayako said as three people walked into the parlor. They walked with a sense of justice and something else I couldn't quite decipher.

"Thank you," Whom I think Queen Luella is said. She then put her hand on the King's shoulder. "Shall we?"

The King nodded and walked boldly into the center, he then began to speak. "You all know the reason for us being here. So if you wish to speak to us upon the matter, please don't hesitate. I'm all ears."

He walked back to his wife, son and Ayako. "Where is the girl?" He said to Ayako. She glanced all around the room until her eyes fell upon me.

"Cinderella," She called. I said a quick goodbye to John and went over to her. I nervously looked at the three other people standing next to me. The King and Queen looked amazing the way they were dressed and their son, although he didn't look as though he cared, looked good too. I looked at the Queen again, she looked a lot happier than before and there was a twinkle in her eye as she watched me.

I turned my full attention to Ayako then, "Yes?"

"Go and fetch your dear sister would you? She's been looking forward to this for ages, we wouldn't want her to miss out."

I scowl and walk past, "Whatever."

I walk to the bottom of the stairs and shout "Masako get the hell down here now! Your mother is wanting you."

I turn back around to face an angry Ayako, amused King and Queen and a smirking Prince. Why are they like that? Is it what I said? I here Masako come running down the stairs. I look up to see her clad in a long blue dress, but then I noticed that the dress is too long. Her foot got caught and then she tripped. I moved back so that she wouldn't touch me.

I bump into someone as Masako lands at the foot of the stairs. " Oh sorry," I say as I look at who I bumped into. I let a frown show on my face. I had bumped into the Prince but his face looked so familiar even though I have never seen him before.

"Gene?" I questioned as I remembered that dark haired boy I used to play with as a child.

Ayako grabbed my arm and hauled me into the parlor. She shoved yet another tray in my hands and told me to go pass them around. I did so, but I gave one last look at the royal family. They were all shocked and I didn't know why. Did they know Gene? But they couldn't have. Gene isn't royalty so they're not family and over the years the royals didn't go out publicly until only recently.

"Cindie!" I turned to see John. He held two drinks. He passed me one and I passed him a cake from the tray. "Here, I'll do that." He said taking the tray from me. "How about you play the piano to liven things up a bit?"

I grinned. "Of course I will. I've been dying to play again for years!"

I raced over to the piano and sat down. I traced the keys with my finger before beginning to play. I move my hand to the higher octave and start by pressing A and then G sharp, then I continued until all of the notes in the piece had been pressed. I moved freely when playing the piano. I let the music take over and the memories flood back in.

I finished and sighed, I'm never going to play this again as long as I live in this house with those Ayako and Masako. For some reason they won't let me play, even though it's my piano.

"Great for someone who hasn't played in years. What was that song? It was very moving." John said sitting down next to me.

"River flows in you by Yiruma." Someone answered for me.

I looked up to see the Gene look-a-like. Prince Oliver stood before us wearing a smirk that annoyed me fore some reason. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at us both. Or me...

"Is there something I can help you with?" I said eying him suspiciously.

Oliver let out a deep chuckle and I found myself blushing a little. I mentally scolded myself. He's the prince, like hell he'll like me! John laughed too and stood up. He grabbed the tray with the snacks on and started to move away. "I'll just give the two of you a minute then, shall I?"

He left. He actually left! Damn you John!

The prince glanced my way and sat down next to me. I just looked at him shocked. What is he doing? Does he not know that a prince and commoner aren't meant to be as close? Oliver faced me, "I need to ask you something. It's about something you said earlier. Something about someone named Gene?"

I stopped what I was doing and held my breath. Gene? What does he want to know about Gene? Gulping, I said. "And what is it that you wish to know?"

"I just want to know a few things. What's his last name?"

I thought for a moment, "Davis I think he said it was. Why? What's this got to do with it?"

Oliver massaged his forehead and sighed. "Gene Davis. You know him and you thought he was me a while ago. Which is perfectly understandable. When did you first meet him?"

"It was before both my parents died. So maybe about 4 or 5 years ago. It's been a long time." I answered.

"Did he tell you anything about himself? Anything at all?" The prince asked. He kept asking me all these questions and honestly, what is it to him? Don't tell me Gene is an outlaw or criminal and he's wanted by the royal family for stealing their crown jewels or something!?

"He told me that he had a brother and that they were orphans. But then they got adopted by this really nice family that gave them new clothes, great food and a lot of new things. He liked to talk a lot." I said. "Why do you want to know?"

"And your name is?" He said ignoring my question.

I scowled at. Why can't he just answer a few of my questions? "My name is Ma... I mean Cinderella."

"Your real name please..." He said. I looked at him and raised a brow. How on earth did he know that Cinderella wasn't my real name? And will he believe me when I say my name? For some reason everyone decides that I'm lying. What is the big deal about my name!?

"Mai Taniyama. " I said quietly.

Oliver stood quickly. "Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!" He muttered this over and over, and ran a hand through his hair. He suddenly cursed and turned back to me. "I need you to answer one more question. What year did your mother die?"

Confused, I replied. "2009. Why? What has that got to do with anything!?"

The prince grabbed my arm and steered me away towards the King and Queen. He suddenly let go of my arm and I almost fell on the floor. Damn this guy! He might be a bloody prince but that doesn't give him the effing right to do that! Damn prince! He can rot in hell for all I care! Huh, if only I had learned about curses, I could have made a voodoo doll by now and played with it.

"It's her, defiantly her" I heard Oliver say to the King. "There's no doubt about it. What do we do now? Ask her to come back with us? I doubt she will. I've only known her for the best of an hour and I can tell you that she probably won't come with us. So what do we do?"

"Just ask her, Noll. I'm sure she's not that funny! And I think she knows that she can trust us." I heard the Queen say.

Confused, I listened in some more but they have stopped. I turn to face them and see all three of them staring at me. Oh, was that conversation about me?!

The King coughed. "Uhh Mai. Could you please step outside with us for a moment."

I followed the family of royals who were going into the living room. They sat themselves down on the leather couch and told me to take a seat next to them. I nodded and did as they said, but I couldn't help but be a little puzzled. What is so urgent that they need to take me away from the party? Can't it wait till later? I wanted to play another song on the piano.

"Would you like to stay with us for a while? I'm not sure how long it will be for," The Queen began but stopped as she heard her son laugh a little. She scowled and continued. "Anyway, I know it won't be home but we would really love it if you come and stay in the castle. We'll give you new clothes, give you great meals and all new things to use while you stay. You'll even have your own room, won't that be nice?"

I laughed a little myself. "Anywhere other than here is home. I'll go with you."

All three of my companions sat there with mouths open. Were they not expecting me to agree so suddenly?

"It'd be better than here anyway. It will be more like a holiday, a vacation... If I go and spend some time in your castle. A nice break from this sh!t... Oh, I mean life. So when do we leave? After the party is over? That is the whole reason you came here after all. Wouldn't want to miss out, would we?" I said smiling.

Queen Luella nodded but she had a ghost of a scowl on her face. "Yes of course, the party. Well we don't really need to stay much longer. We've already seen the girl and might I say, that was quite an entrance. We'll surely remember her. Right Martin?"

King Martin suppressed a laugh. "Yes, yes we will. Now Mai, how about you go and pack some of your things that you want to take with you? Oliver will go up there with you to help. Hurry along now."

I nodded and stood. "Okay, I won't be too long... I mean we won't be that long."

Oliver had already walked ahead and was climbing the stairs. I raced to catch up. Damn this prince! Walk slower already! I caught up to him soon enough and we went onto the second floor. I noticed Oliver stop and look around. I laughed a little and carried on walking.

"I'm on top floor, keep walking prince." I said. I made sure to use a sarcastic tone when I said 'prince'. I really don't care if he is one or not, I just wanted him to know that.

I pushed open my door and beckoned Oliver in. He hesitated but came in anyway. I watched him for a moment before reaching under my bed to get a suitcase. I lifted it up and put it on my bed. Sitting down, I then unzipped the suitcase. My eyes scanned across the room as I thought about what to pack.

Ahh, I know! I reached into my wardrobe and took out some of my clothes. I only had plain t-shirts, sweat pants, battered jeans full of wholes and old trainers that were beginning to wear down. I stuffed them all in the suitcase and then went to my big bookcase. It was filled with different books from fairy tales to real life things. I grabbed a few of the middle shelf and put them in the suitcase. But then when I turned around, I saw Oliver at my bookcase holding an old book.

I walked up to him and took it out of his hands. That old book was precious to me. It was given to me by my father from his father and then his father. It was about my great grandfather's encounter with a ghost. It had graphs and charts to explain temperatures of when the ghost was nearby. It had first person encounters and detailed descriptions about other things, like the history the ghost brought with it.

"That's a very precious book of mine. It's very old and I couldn't bare if anything happened to it." I said putting it into the suitcase.

Oliver nodded, "My father has a book similar to that. Maybe I could show it you when we arrive at the castle."

We walk down stairs until we reach the front door where the King and Queen were waiting for us. I took a quick peak into the parlor where I noticed that a lot of the guests had gone. John was still there. I smiled and quickly walked over to him.

He pulled me into his arms and we hugged for a moment. "I'm going away," I said.

"So I've heard. Do you know how long for?" Was his reply. I shrugged my shoulders and he let me go. "Don't forget to write to me, You know my address. Bye Cindie."

I know that I haven't known John all that long, but I feel like we've become so close. I'll miss him.

I said one final goodbye and left the house. The King and Queen sat upfront in the car and I was forced into the back with Oliver. Oh _joy! _It's going to be one very long ride. _Very, very long!_

You know what, I think that I'll take a nap...


	3. Chapter 3

AN: My new story is loosely based on the Cinderella story but with my own odd twist. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, thank you to anyone that reviews, follows or favorites. I apologize to anyone that is kinda confused, I promise to clear things up as I write more. I also hope that this chapter answers some of your questions.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter three**

When I woke up, I was lying on a big four poster bed. It had red velvet curtains and polished wood. It was a really comfy bed - just putting that out there!

I swung back the curtains and looked at the room. It was also quite big, a guest bedroom I think. There was a desk beside the bed and it had some pens and paper sprawled across it. There was a set of double doors on the farthest right, and another door on the opposite side of the room which led to a walk in wardrobe. There was a small rug in the center of the room and a few lamps dotted around. It was a nice room, but I miss my old attic space.

I got up and stretched, yawned and ran a hand through my hair. What am I supposed to do now? I think it's a little rude if I just walk around the castle and not say anything to the royal family, after all, I am their guest.

I walked to the double doors and opened them. I looked out to see two other doors opposite the room I had slept in. Maybe that's where the others sleep. I stepped out, closing the door behind me and walked along the landing. There was several portraits hung on the walls and huge chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. I continue walking until I came to a set of stairs that led down to the next floor. I smiled to myself and glanced at the banister.

I sat on the banister, swung my left leg over the other side and adjusted my grip. I was going to slide down and hopefully not hurt myself or fall of in the process. I let go of the banister and began to slide down.

"What are you doing?" I heard someone ask.

I looked to my right to see Oliver standing there with crossed arms. I gulped and continued to slide down. But then I lost my balance. I was preparing myself to get hurt. To get my brains busted up my the shiny wooden floor. To possibly break my arm or something. Instead, I felt someone take me into their grip. We fell backwards onto the stairs but at least it wasn't on the floor below.

I opened my eyes and looked to see who had caught me. I blushed. It was Oliver. Embarrassed, I tried to break free but his grip was too strong.

"Next time you try and do that make sure someone is at the bottom ready to catch you Mai." Oliver said letting me go. I stood quickly and made some space between the two of us.

I nodded and started to walk away when I heard him cough to clear his throat. I turned my head to look at him.

"Martin and Luella wish to see you in the dining hall. Follow me," Oliver walked past and grabbed my arm in the process. He steered me away... yet again. I just walked with him because I had no choice in the matter. But I couldn't help but look at the hand that had a gentle hold on my arm. It felt so different to when Masako was dragging me places. I couldn't help but blush at this.

We stopped outside another set of double doors and Oliver turned to face me. He smirked when he saw my face. "I know that I am unbelievably handsome Mai, but I didn't know that you could be besotted that easily. Watch yourself."

I growled at him, my face went red with frustration (or embarrassment, I don't want to think about it) and I forced my arm out of his grip. Pushing the door open, I stomped into the dining hall with Oliver following behind. I walked up to a chair and sat there scowling.

"Good morning Mai," Luella said. "Sleep well?"

Nodding, I helped myself to some food on the table. I was buttering a piece of toast when Oliver decided to sit next to me on my left. I scowled again and moved away ever so slightly. I don't really want to be seated next this jerk. He's just a self absorbed, narcissistic, egotistical jerk! I just want to have breakfast in peace without a narcissist breathing down my neck! It's not much to ask for...

"Mother," Oliver started. "Should we introduce them again?"

I frowned. What is he talking about now? I hope it is not about me, I have had enough of people conversing about me without my awareness. Just include me in the conversation next time!

"I think that would be the best idea, don't you agree Martin?" She replied looking over at her husband. Martin nodded and resumed eating his full English breakfast. He cut up the egg and said, "Should we do it now? I think he would be eager to meet her again. The last time they met, he wouldn't stop talking about her."

Oliver and Luella nodded in agreement. "He did indeed," Oliver stated. "Mai, come with me for a moment. You're going to meet someone very dear to us who I know you will like."

Oliver grabbed my arm again and hauled me out of the room. I wish he would stop doing that, my arm hurts! _So that conversation was about me_, I mused. Who are they taking me to meet? It seems as though that person and myself have already met and he didn't stop talking about me. I wonder who it is...

We walked outside, passing several gardens in the process. I counted, exactly five gardens and we were going to the sixth. Why is that person in the garden, and why the sixth garden?

"This person..." I started. "...Means a big deal to you and your family. Just who is he?"

Oliver stopped to face me. He had a sad smile on his face. His eyes were moist and his skin pale. "That person is my brother. He got into a bit of an accident and I resurrected him using my PK, psychokinesis. He is very ill and has to get a lot of vitamin C, water and a few other things to keep healthy. That's why he is always out in the gardens... Mai, my brother is someone you used to play with. It's -"

"Oi! Oliver!" Someone shouted.

I looked over to see who was calling and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. The person ran towards us. He was wearing black to match his disheveled hair, he had pale skin but there was a touch of pink on his cheeks. I gasped. I knew this person and he looked like the prince. He was the person who I thought the prince looked like.

"Mai?" He asked.

"G-Gene? Is that really you?" I said. Gene gave me the warmest smile I had seen in years and then all the memories came flooding back. The memories of Gene and I playing as young children and there was someone else who played with us. Could that have been Oliver?

Then I suddenly felt warm arms hugging me tightly. I smiled at Gene as he hugged me. I hugged him back and then he finally let go. Then it clicked. Gene had died?! When? How? What happened? I'm sure that I would remember if Gene had died, or someone would have told me about it...

"Gene, are you okay? H-how did it happen? W-what..." I began but Gene held his hand over me mouth. He smiled gratefully and pulled me over to a bench where Oliver was already sat.

The twins both had sad looks on their faces as they watched me. Gene began, "It was 2010, the year after your mother died. I had left your house and was walking home. I made it outside the castle when a red car came around the corner and hit me. I was knocked unconscious but I was still alive. It took weeks to patch up some of my injuries but by then it was too late, my heart was coming to a stop. Then Oliver used his PK to try and bring me back alive. It worked but not completely. I'm ill now and I will be for years, but I am alive and that's the best part of it."

Gene reached his hand over to my face and wiped away tears that I didn't know was there. I sniffed and smiled sadly. Yes, him being alive was the best part of it. I'm glad that Oliver resurrected him.

"I'm just happy to be alive. I can be friends with you again Mai. We can do all sorts together. Oliver can join us too. It will be just like old times! When we were able to sneak out to go see you and we did all sorts of things together! But now that you live with us, it'll be a lot easier." Gene said.

I smiled and wiped the rest of my tears away. "Of course Gene. We can do all sorts of things now, especially because we are older."

"Exactly Mai," He said. "How about we go and do something now?"

"Uhh okay then. What shall we do?" I answered.

Gene just smiled mischievously, he grabbed my hand and Oliver's arm and dragged us away. We ran towards one of the gardens. He suddenly stopped, took of his shoes and socks and walked into the lake that was before us. He then splashed Oliver and dragged him in. Oliver went beneath the water and when he came back he was scowling at his brother.

"You coming in Mai?" Gene called.

I laughed and quickly jumped in with them. It's been a while since Gene and I went swimming. We did this occasionally, or we would just play in the water.

I dived deeper into the water, wetting the other two in the process. I swam back up to the surface and splashed Gene in the face. He laughed and dunked me under. I screamed as the icy water engulfed me. I made sure to drag Gene down with me. If he thought he was going to get away with that then he's in for a lot of trouble!

We all played in the water for ages until we were all tired. We were soaking wet and I was shivering slightly as we sat on the grass beside the lake.

Gene and Oliver was lying either side of me shirtless (I blushed when they took off their shirts, I blushed as they lay down next to me, I blushed when either one of them looked over at me. Let's just say I blushed an awful lot...)

"Are you enjoying yourself Mai?" Gene asked edging closer ever so slightly. He ran a hand through his hair, something both Oliver and Gene do a lot.

I nodded and sat up. "Yeah, a lot more than I thought I would. It's really nice here."

"That's good to hear," Oliver began. "How about I take you to the library now. I will show you that book I told you about earlier."

Oliver and I stood up, bid a goodbye to Gene and left for the library. I tripped over the large rug on the landing and Oliver quickly moved to grab me. "You aren't all too graceful, are you?" He whispered in my ear. I couldn't help but shiver at his low voice.

I hear a few jealous remarks and sniggering to my right. Scowling I turned to see several maids going about their usual business - cleaning and bad mouthing. I couldn't help but listen in to their conversation as they passed by.

"Lucky b!tch..."

"How did she of all people catch his attention?"

"Who is the girl anyway? Can't be anyone important... Just look at the rags she arrived in!"

I looked down at my clothes. They were wet but they weren't that bad. I wore a plain blue shirt with old jeans. Sure they had wholes in them, but I've seen girls walk around like that all the time. It was the fashion that girls followed, I think. I don't really know what the fashion is, I'll just stick to what I like. A nice pair of comfy sweat pants and plain old t-shirt.

Ignoring the maids, I went into the library. However, I stopped in the door way. My mouth hung open and my eyes wide.

The library was humongous! There were shelves upon shelves of books on every wall in the room. There were old fashioned chairs next to small lamps, a foot stool next to each one and a set of spiral stairs leading to another floor full of books. It was an amazing library. I could easily find myself spending lots of time in here. Whether that was taking a nap right after a quick read or just reading for hours at a time.

Oh, do I love to read and sleep...


	4. Chapter 4

AN: My new story is loosely based on the Cinderella story but with my own odd twist. I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. I will try my best to update a lot more from now onwards. I have also thought up some other story ideas for Ghost Hunt as well as Gakuen Alice, if any of you are interested. But I will do my best to get further with this story first.

Also, I am sorry if you start to get confused about the plot again, I will do my best to make it clear enough.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter four**

"So this is the book I told you about," Oliver began. "Feel free to have a look."

I took the book out of his hands and sat in one of the chairs. I touched the cover and wiped away some dust. It looked as though no one had really read it in a long time. The title said _'Worthington Manor'. _I guess that Oliver's great grandfather was alive back in the 1800s, the same time as my own great grandfather. I wonder if a lot of men at the time had this fascination with the supernatural.

I opened the book to the first page and frowned. At the top of the page someone had written a quick message. It looked as though the writer was in a hurry because the message was scribbled and not neat at all. In this country, neat handwriting meant great respect.

The message said:  
_Whoever holds this book in their hands must be a descendent of mine or a dear friend of one. I would like you to know about the business that my companions and I are up to. Ghost Hunting! As ridiculous as it may sound, it is one scary hobby of mine that I take great pleasure in doing. But I must warn you now, ghost hunting is not a game. Not at all... If one were to take ghost hunting lightly, they would suffer. My companion Taniyama-san is full of regret because of his actions. He realized what truly happens to those who don't take this seriously. He landed himself in hospital because of his thoughtless actions. Despite all of this,, I admire the man, without him the rest of my team would all be in his place. I hope that whoever is reading this takes my advice and warnings if they ever wish to pursue my hobby. I bid you farewell and wish you good luck._

Truthfully, I was shocked. Taniyama-san? Was Oliver's great grandfather talking about my great grandfather? It couldn't be, could it? But he might be, right? Although, I don't think that I will get a direct answer because both men are long gone and humans haven't invented the technology to speak with the dead.

I turned the page to look at a few photographs. They were in black and white but you could make out a few things. For example the faces of a few people and what must be 'Worthington Manor'.

My jaw dropped. There were group in front of the manor, a group of five. And directly in the center was a man that looked like my great grandfather. Gasping, I ran back the room I was staying in and looked for the old book; the one about ghost hunting.

Flipping through the pages, I finally came across what I was looking for. There was a picture in there of six men, including my great grandfather. The six men in both pictures looked exactly the same and at the front of the book was a message, just like in Oliver's. I went back to the first page to read the message.

The message said:  
_If you ar__e reading this and your last name was or is Taniyama, I wish that you keep reading. You hold in your hands, the last piece to out puzzle. My companions and I want all of our descendents to get together and finish what we started. If you are confused or have any questions then I am deeply sorry that I am not around to answer them. But I will do my best to make things clear. Are unfinished business is the ghost hunting. I have a feeling that we don't have very long to live while we are all here in the manor, so before we all die, we came to the decision that our great grandchildren will continue for __us. I'm sorry if this is all sudden for you but I want you to find the others. The others being our grandchildren. Further into this book are the names of my companions, their grandchildren should have the same name. There will be clues as to where they are living and how to find them. But for all I know, you could have come across them without knowing. After all, it was fate, a prophecy was made and it will be fulfilled either way_. _Whether that is through the books each of you have or by sheer coincidence. I wish you good luck and hope for a safe journey here and onwards._

I was shocked, actually shocked! So it was true, our great grandfathers were together and they were ghost hunting. I picked up the photograph and turned it over to look at the names. It said: from right to left, Matsuzaki-san, Takigawa-san, Taniyama-san, Davis-san, Hara-chan, Brown-kun.

"Hey Mai? Why did you run off?" I heard Oliver say as he walked into the room.

I handed him both books open at the front page and then showed him the photographs. I watched him as a frown appeared on his features. He put a hand to his head and ran a hand through his hair. He was in deep concentration. I wonder if he is able to understand this better than me.

He put the books down and looked at the photo. "So this is what my father meant when he said... I wonder why this is... Hmm..."

"Speak your mind will you?" I say. It was just getting a little frustrating that he would finish his sentence inside of his head.

"A long time ago, when my father presented me with this book, I was confused. He said that it was a gift, something I should hold until I meet a group of people. He said that I would have many dangerous adventures with them and he wanted to prepare me for it. So he taught me an awful lot about ghost hunt, mainly the science behind it. But until now, I never really understood why."

He passed me back the book and picture. "Maybe we should run this by my father, he knew who you were the first time he met you and asked me to make sure you were who you claimed. Although, there is something he isn't telling me. And it's like you stepmother knows what that is as well. Anyway, come... We will go see him now. Make sure you bring the books."

He got up and left for the door. Quickly, I grabbed the books and ran after him. He was already half way down the stairs by the time I had gotten there and then I tripped... again. What is it with me and stairs!?

Suddenly a hand grabbed me from behind and I shrieked. The person pulled me back onto my feet but by the time I had turned back around there was no one there, no one at all. There wasn't anyone along the landing whatsoever and I didn't hear any door close, so no one could have gone in a room. Stumped, I decided to continue on down the stairs.

Looking down, I noticed that Oliver was waiting. "Don't dawdle Mai. Just because I can move faster than you doesn't mean that you can move twice as slow. I've seen you run faster to get away from your stepmother and sister."

I swear that if this is a cartoon, there would be smoke coming out of my ears and nose! I am so frustrated! Shouting, I said, "You narcissist!"

The corner of Oliver's lip tugged up a little and I stopped where I was. He was attempting a smile - it needs a lot of work, but he smiled. I beamed back at him and carried on walking down the stairs. I guess being with the narcissist isn't all that bad if he can act like a human rather than a robot.

Oliver and I found Martin in the kitchen. He had fixed himself a cup of tea and was munching on some biscuits. Oh, the life of a king, eh? Smirking, we walked over to him and showed him the books. Martin's face lit up with excitement as soon as he held the books in his hands.

Martin gestured for us to take a seat at the small table in the room so he could also give us a cup of tea. I grabbed a biscuit from the middle of the table and began to eat. Martin turned back to us holding two cups, he had a small smile on his face.

"You don't know how long I have had to wait until this day has come. Ever since my own father gave me that book and told me to give it to my son, I've been waiting. But the prophecy didn't see two sons, so only one was chosen, the other... had a very special job to do." Martin said setting the cups down on the table and taking a seat.

I thanked him before Oliver had a chance to speak. He said, "And what of Gene? It's obvious that you have chosen me to be apart of the group, so what special job does he have to do?"

Martin sighed. "That, I do not know. But when the time comes, I am positive that Gene will know and understand what he has to do. But I assure you, he will be helping you in matters unexplainable to the mundane. Only we will understand."

I nodded, it starting to make little sense now. "But what of this prophecy that you speak of?" I ask.

Martin drank from his cup before answering. "The prophecy is about eight people. Those people will come together to finish ghost hunting. Two of the eight will not be there as of the start and are no descendents to the original six. Nonetheless, they are a great part to the group and will help to get the unfinished business completed. You have to trust my judgement when I say this, but there is something else in the prophecy. Something which I will change the group and stop someone from going into a pit of despair, sadness and loneliness."

"Care to share the information? It could help us a great deal." Oliver said draining the last of his tea.

"I'm afraid that I cannot tell you this. But a member of the group hold some clue to this and will most likely figure it out because they are smart and a great researcher. When they arrive in the group, feel free to ask them. But it is whether they give the information. If they chose not to, then please leave them be. They know what's best." Martin answered.

"When?" I start. "When will we meet the others?"

"In all good time Mai. But first you need to learn." Martin said grabbing for another biscuit.

"Learn what?" Oliver asks.

"Learn the ropes. What it is actually like when you are out on the field. You need to be prepared for ghost hunting, so I will teach you all I know. We will learn tomorrow after breakfast. Make sure you where suitable clothing, something that isn't of royalty. You don't want to be wearing heavy clothing when you need to run from a ghost, do we?" Martin laughed.

"So, get well rested for tomorrow. It's going to be a long day."


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. I really enjoy reading the reviews, it makes my day. So please feel free to review, whether it is how to improve my story or complements. I hope that any of you are understanding the plot so far (I got a little confused myself a one point.) Hehe :)

Oh, and anything in here to do with the paranormal, I do not know if it is all true, do not take my word for it.

**Disclaimer: **No matter how many times I ask Santa, Ghost Hunt will never be mine.

* * *

**Chapter five**

The next day I arrived at breakfast on time and dressed in my old clothes. I ate my food so quick that I felt a little nauseated afterwards. Clutching my stomach, I sighed. Maybe I shouldn't have ate so fast...

"Oliver. Mai. Should we go then?" Martin asked as soon as he had finished eating.

Nodding excitedly, I quickly stood and went to follow him but stopped. _Something_ in my stomach lurched! (Was it even the food? It shouldn't have reached my stomach yet...) Maybe I should move slower so I won't be sick. Walking, my feet carried me away to one of the gardens. Oliver and Martin were just up ahead, they were talking quietly. Intrigued, I moved closer to see if I could hear them.

"Oh, there she is now. Come over here Mai." Martin yelled purposely stopping his conversation with Oliver. What was there to hide?!

Sighing, I walked over to them and raised an eyebrow. What are we doing in one of the gardens? I thought that if we were going to attempt to hunt ghosts, that it would at least by inside where the ghosts actually are. "Umm. What are we doing out here?" I ask quizzically.

"We are going to practice using psychokinesis." Martin said proudly looking over at Oliver. couldn't help but ask, "What's psychokinesis?"

I thought that I saw Oliver face-palm out of the corner of my eye, but I must be imagining things. A narcissist wouldn't do anything too dangerous in fear of hurting their precious face, so he couldn't have done that. Or maybe the narcissist does actually do human-like things when he think that no one is looking.

"Psychokinesis, or PK for short, is an alleged psychic ability allowing a person to influence a physical system without physical interaction. Examples of psychokinesis could include moving an object, levitating and teleporting. Oliver here, is a strong PK user and has a great amount of it. But there is a downside."

"Downside?" I ask Martin. He nodded and smiled sadly.

"Yes, a downside. His PK abilities are so strong that it is physically very dangerous for him to use them. So he can only use it in small amounts. But when Gene is feeling up to it, the two of them bounce the PK between themselves until it's amplified enough for Oliver to use it to do whatever he wants. Fascinating as it is, it's also very dangerous if it isn't controlled properly. He needs a partner to be able to use his PK. And that is why I chose to do this first."

"What are you trying to say? That Mai will be my partner? It won't work, we need a telepathic connection." Oliver said.

Telepathy? Psychokinesis? PK? This was all going over my head. I'm confused right about now. But I have to concentrate and try my best. For everyone's sake.

Martin smiled enthusiastically. "That's why we will make one Oliver. Don't doubt me, I know what I am doing."

"How do we make a telepathic connection so suddenly?" I asked, skeptical. It seems like it's supposed to be a long process, could it be done quickly?

"We will try and try again until we have perfected it. Oliver has quite strong abilities in this area too, I know for sure that it won't take too long. A week at the most an hour at the least. If you concentrate hard enough and follow what I say, we should complete it within the hour." Martin said.

I nodded. I'm starting to get a little too excited. _Breathe Mai, breathe, _I say to myself.

"Right, let us begin. I want the two of you to sit opposite each other at a short distance away. I want you to believe that it can be done, being skeptical about it will only lengthen the time we do it in."

Oliver and I sat down. Martin nodded, "Mai I want you to think of a time where you felt strong emotions such as excitement or anger. Concentrate on that, okay? Strong emotions are easier to pick up on when trying to open a telepathic link with another person. Oliver, I don't want you to concentrate. Concentration is actually counterproductive, since your mind must be open to receive whatever signals are being emitted. I just want you to look at Mai and see if you pick up on anything she is thinking about." Martin says moving away from us to give us space.

"Okay, you can start now." Martin says as I begin to think about times when I was angry. It seemed the easiest considering the fact that there are three people in my life that irk me: stepmother Ayako, Masako and Oliver. Hold on a minute... Masako has her father's last name, 'Hara'. Could she be one of the group? No, there's no time to think about that just yet. I need to concentrate.

I pictured times where Ayako gave me super long lists of chores and how I had to bite down on my tongue so that I didn't do anything too drastic. I thought about those times where Masako and her cronies would attempt to bully me in school by hiding my books or spreading nasty rumors. And I thought of all my reactions to those things. Where I got angry and had to hold myself back.

Then I felt a tingling feeling in my mind and looked over at Oliver. He had a small smile on his face as I felt him dig deeper into my mind. The tingling feeling stopped after a while and then I just felt him prying in my mind. It was an odd sensation. Then I felt his presence leave my mind and I was by myself again.

I noticed that Martin had walked back over and he seemed pleased. "I take it you have done it then? That was quicker than expected."

"Yes, it was rather easy. "Oliver started. "She had all these angry wave lengths reaching out to me, it was overwhelming."

Oliver massaged his forehead, glanced over at me, a smirk playing at his lips. I scowled at him, turning my nose up. I then turned to Martin he was still smiling.

"Is there anything else we have to do? Like strengthen the link we have opened?" I asked.

"Just to practice as much as you can without tiring yourselves out too much. Now I want you two to try and speak to each other. Match your breathing with your heart beat to relax. Try to send each other small words to begin with."

I smiled, this is going to be even more fun than I originally hoped. I calmed my breathing rate so that I could match it to my heart beat. Ah, there it is. 1,2,3,4 then hold breath and release after a few seconds. 1,2,3,4 hold breath and release breath. I did this for a while until I got it just right.

I concentrated on Oliver, trying to pry into his mind like he did to me. I felt a familiar tingling sensation in my head, he must have beaten me to it. Then I someone mumble something. It sounded quite soft and from a distance away. Then it got slightly louder until it was at a pitch I could hear.

"**_I-d-i-o-t_**" It said.

I scowled at Oliver. Oh did he pick the wrong time to make fun of me. I sent back "**Jerk!**"

And then we got into a mind battle of insults. Throwing words here and there to try and anger each other, Oliver and I also had a glare off.

_**"Narcissist."**_

_**"Baka."**_

_**"Self absorbed conceited jerk-"**_

_**"Could you be quiet, my head can't take all this shouting!"**_

_**"Ahhh! Hey, wait a minute. We're talking to each other in our minds. Is the link completed?"**_

_**"I guess so..."**_

Oliver shrugged and stood up, brushing himself off. He gave me a quick smirk before turning to his father. "We have been talking in sentences. Does that mean that the telepathic link is stronger than you first thought it would be?"

Martin grinned. He ran a hand through his hair before patting us on our heads. "Really?! That's great, I wasn't expecting that. Well done you two, especially you Mai. You have beginners luck. Go ahead and take a break, it's almost time for lunch."

**_"Ha! Did you hear that? Your own father just praised me rather than you. Did that bruise your ego or something? You seem a little pale, is it the ego thing?"_**I said to him in our minds. The corner of his mouth tugged a little and for a moment there I thought he was smiling.

"Come on," He said. "Let's go to the library to do some research on the group."

I nodded in his direction and followed him through the castle. We passed the maids again when we went on the landing on the second floor. They were badmouthing and cleaning, as per usual... Maybe that's all they do all day. What a life, eh? Kings and maids get it off easy.

Then I stopped in my tracks at what one of them said. My eyes went wide and I held my breath. Clenching my fists, I looked down at the floor. Why do they-

**_"Don't listen to them. They don't know what they are talking about. I haven't known you that long but I don't see you as being one of those people."_**

I turned to face Oliver and gave him a small smile. **_"Thanks... They're probably the ones that do that, not me."_**

**_"Exactly. Just ignore the maids."_** Oliver grabbed my arm and dragged me into the library so that we could start our research on the group. But what one of the maids said really hurt. Of course I would never be so disgusting as to do that. I will admit that I like Oliver a tiny bit and I think if the narcissist put some effort in, we could become great friends. However, I would never go this far just to get his attention.

"She probably threw herself at the prince. Forced him to be nice to her. Bribed him most likely. What an ugly side of the commoner b!tch."


	6. Chapter 6

AN: I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. (It's really appreciated...) This story will be very long and some chapters will skip to another person's point of view other than Mai's. I will write it in bold so that it's clear enough to understand. The next chapter will either be a dream lesson between Mai and Gene or from Yasu's point of view, I haven't decided yet.

**Disclaimer: **No matter how many times I ask Santa, Ghost Hunt will never be mine.

* * *

**Chapter six  
**

I slept easy that night, having a strange but interesting dream. I dreamed that Gene (of all people...) was talking to me about telepathy. It was like a mini lesson, really. He told me all this interesting things about controlling people, planting thoughts into their heads and creating a barrier around your mind so that no one could break in that easily. He told me a lot of things like that and then we practiced.

_**"Mai!"**_

We practiced for a while and I got really good at it too. Something I should be proud of considering I am supposed to be an idiot. But it was only a dream, it can't have been real. Oh, but if it was... All the things I could do!

_**"Oi Mai?"**_

Now that I am better at telepathy, I can concentrate on trying to figure out curses and voodoo dolls. What a laugh! I could even conquer the world with psychic abilities and become the leader of my new world, ruling people by controlling their minds. Oh, the things I could do.

_**"Mai? Are you even listening to me?**_

_**"Dammit Oliver, keep your socks on."**_ I shout (in my head) at the narcissist poking around in my mind.

I get up, stretch and quickly glance around my room to make sure Oliver wasn't hiding in a cupboard or under the bed. He could be pulling a very strange prank to make me go partly insane. You never know what narcissists are up to in their fabulous little world... They could be planning things. Creepy things...

_**"Mai you have missed breakfast and if you don't hurry you will be late for dinner. We've been waiting for ages."** _Came Oliver's reply. I got fed up of him talking to me that I decided to block him out. Using a technique that Gene taught me in my sleep (don't get dirty ideas, gees!) I built a mental wall of stone. I pictured the wall being built higher and higher until you could no longer see the top, and then pictured how strong it was.

It worked! The tingly feeling had stopped and no one was poking around in my head. - Oh, the irony.

I quickly changed out of my night wear and into my old clothes, we will probably do some more training today. Don't get me wrong, I love having royalty push pretty expensive clothing at me and begging me - Yes, begging - to wear them. But I do miss my old tattered 'rags', as the maids had called it.

I ran down the stairs and into the dining room, my stomach practically doing flips as it moaned for some food. I raced to the table and grabbed a handful of chicken and put it on the plate in front of me. I went to get some veg when I heard a cough to my left.

Oliver sat there with a raised brow as he gazed in my eyes, as if he was searching for something. "How did you do it?"

"How did I do what?" I asked generally confused.

Then it was Martin's turn to ask the questions. He suddenly had a very serious expression as he began to speak. "How did you block Oliver from speaking to you in your head? He tried and tried again to speak to you but he couldn't. Has the telepathic link been broken somehow? Or... No you couldn't have could you? I haven't taught you that yet and it takes a while to master it. Answer me Mai, did you create a mental barrier?"

My face lit up as I heard his musing. "Yes I did actually. It was quite easy for me really. I was just so fed up of hearing his voice so earlier in the morning."

"It was only ten minutes ago since we were talking, and Mai, it's the afternoon." Oliver said taking a bite of a roast potato.

"How did you do it?" Martin asked again while eying me suspiciously. I chuckled a little seeing his expression.

"Gene taught me," I said pouring myself a drink. "Well Gene in my dreams did. We were learning about some areas of telepathy all night while I was asleep."

Out of the corner of my eye I thought that I saw Oliver flinch a little but I must of been imagining things. Flinching was not in Oliver's book about how to be the perfect narcissist. Why would he flinch anyway? It's just me and Gene spending the night together in our dreams learning things. What's there to flinch at?

"In your sleep?" Martin said sharing a quick glance with his son.

The two of them turned to face me, one with a look of awe and another with a I'm-going-to-test-you-like-a-crazy-scientist look. Shuddering, I finished putting some food on to my plate and began to eat. My stomach was wailing and getting on my nerves just a little, so I decided to shut it up.

"Uh huh! In my sleep... Why? Is there something wrong with that? It was just a dream after all, wasn't it?" I said playing with some sweet corn.

Father and son shared another glance and I felt a little ticked off. Martin answered, "Mai, I think that you were astral projecting. Astral projection allows you to project out of your body and into the next dimension, which is the astral plane. When you do this, you are in another body called the astral body. The astral body has some amazing properties, unlike the physical body that is held-down by gravity. The astral body can overcome this limitation by the effort of thought alone. While out of your body, you can not only walk around as if in the physical, but also soar above the trees or go out into space. One of the greatest fears while on earth is pain or injury. While out of your body, absolutely nothing can cause damage to the astral body, in the next dimension, fire, knives, guns, falling from great heights, electrical shocks, disease, and wild animals cannot do you any harm."

"That sounds interesting. Did I really do that?" I say more to myself than the others. The lesson I had with Gene was just about learning the basics of telepathy but I didn't know that I was astral projecting. Wait, I think I remember Gene mentioning a thing or to about it. It was also called astral travel...

"I suggest that you get more practice with being an astral walker," Oliver said. "If you don't know a lot about it then it could be dangerous considering you are not actually in your body and off in another dimension. Anyway, father was just about to tell us what are training for today would be."

"Ah yes! Today you will practice sending images to each other through telepathy and then I want to teach you how to detect whether someone is trying to break into your head as well as how to create a barrier to project yourself. It's a good thing we have Mai to help you Oliver."

I chanced a look at Oliver and laughed at his face. He was scowling and turning away from his father's playful expression. Something you rarely see. **_"Don't scowl too much Oliver, it will mess up your handsome face."_**

**_"You think I'm handsome..."_**

I froze, a blush creeping up on my cheeks. Why did I have to say that to him in my head!? Quickly, I thought of something to get myself out of the situation. _**"Well that's what all the maids were saying."**_

_**"They have good taste!"**_

Did he really just say that? The narcissist is just so unbelievable. I wanted to scream in frustration but the boy's father was present, I don't think that will settle well if I want to stay in the castle owned by the man himself. I sighed, this is going to be one long stay with the family.

Finishing my dinner, I looked over expectantly at Martin and Oliver but to see that their chairs were vacated and they were waiting by the door. How do they move so quick!?

Soon enough the three of us were back outside in one of the gardens. Oliver and I say opposite each other and Martin pacing back and fourth instructing us on what to do. The two of us sat there patiently awaiting his next instruction.

"Breathe in and out, match your breath with your heart rate. Once that is done I want you to open that telepathic link you share." Martin said.

Following his instructions, we matched our breathing with our heart rates. Oliver opened the link between us by calling me an idiot (his favorite word I think...) and then before we could go into another battle of insults Martin stopped us by instructing us some more.

"Now I Mai to think of an object, don't say it in your head, but just think it. And then when Oliver receives the image, I want him to say it out loud for us."

Stumped, I thought of what image I could send him. An apple or a feather seemed to easy and they were an obvious choice that many people would pick. I wanted to do something easy but unique at the same time. Hmmm, maybe a book? The book with 'Worthington Manor' as its title? I could do that easy!

I pictured the brown dusty book with its title written in big bold letters. I pictured every inch of it from the front. Every piece of dust, every creased page, every little detail. Hopefully, Oliver had received the image and would say it aloud so that we could move onto something else already.

"You're picturing a book," He said raising an eyebrow. "A book about the manor. What an interesting choice, I was expecting an apple or something."

I smiled in triumph. So me wanting to be unique while trying to send imaged to Oliver through telepathy (even though it's already unique in its own psychical way) had made the narcissist doubt my actions. My victory was worth while, even though it wasn't that much to celebrate. I mentally cheered.

_**"Hey narcissist?" **_

_**"Yes idiot?"**_

_**"I was wondering about one of the members. The one named Hara-san..."** _I played with the hem of my shirt until he answered.

_**"Um, my stepsister Masako has the last name Hara. Could it be her?"**_

_**"It could be. How about we postpone training to go and find out some more about the other members. After all, we didn't finish the research from a short while ago. I think it's best if we go now."**_

I nodded at him and we stood. Excusing ourselves, we raced to the library. Our curiosity was getting the best of us, we actually ran there. Something I don't really do, but it was a matter of research and telepathy... And we chose research for that afternoon.

Thankfully there weren't any maids cluttered outside the library so I was able to get in there without being bombarded with insults, I already get enough of that from Oliver. I don't want it from several other people, especially maids who think they are better than you. They're just stupid.

Oliver turned on the laptop he had in the library. He was sat on the couch that just happened to be the place where I slept after an afternoon of research.

He typed quickly and then a page full of info popped up. Curious, I sat down next to him and looked at the laptop screen. He had pulled up Masako's family history of four generations and was looking at the page. He then clicked on the picture of Masako's great grandfather. But before he did, I caught a glimpse of who her mother was and it wasn't the woman who was looking after her. So what was the woman at home doing there? Ayako Matsuzaki was looking after Masako Hara in my house while I was staying in the castle with a royal family.

I was confused. Why was Ayako looking after Masako? Why did she treat me terribly when looking out for her _'child'? _It was strange really...

Turning my attention back to the laptop screen, I saw the picture of Masako's great grandfather. It looked like the man in the books.

"Oh great!" I said. "Masako really is a member of our group."


	7. Chapter 7

AN: I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. (It's really appreciated...) I'm glad that a lot of you enjoy it and find it interesting. I have over a thousand views already, that made my day :)

**Disclaimer: **Sadly, I do not own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter eight****  
**

It wasn't long until I had fallen asleep in the library next to Oliver. And immediately after I had dozed off, I cam face to face with Gene. He had a serious expression on his face and then I noticed a golden glow surrounding him. It edged along his skin until it reached his hands where a mass of the glow lay in wait.

Gene moved his hands as if he were going to throw something, and then a small part of the glow came straight at me. Panicking, I tried to doge it but it caught my arm and I felt numb where it had hit. When I looked down, I noticed that the glow had pierced open my skin.

Gene (if it was Gene - the evil backstabber or should I say golden glow thrower... yeah, I said that) slowly walked over to me. He knelt down beside me and pressed his hand on my arm, where it felt numb, and then my arm was back to normal. My skin had closed back up and there was no sign that it was ever pierced in the fist place.

Dumbfounded, I just stared at my arm where I was hit. What exactly just happened? And why did a golden glow pierce my skin? I needed answers.

"Um Gene..." I stammered. "What the hell was that for!? You didn't need to startle me and then attack me with that glowing thing!"

He smiled slightly as he watched my movements. "You now have some of my energy flowing within you. I'm sorry that I did it like that, but it's all i could think of at the time." Gene rubbed the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. "Yeah sorry about that. I forgot that it stuns people. Anyway, now that some of my energy is flowing within you, we can start tonight's training. Stand up."

I stood and brushed myself off. I was a little annoyed at what he did but decided to forgive him. He was doing it for the training after all.

"Right, Martin wants you to be Oliver's partner when he needs to use his PK. Since I was his partner originally, I thought that I would give you a head start on training. Watch this."

I watched Gene intensely. The golden glow came back around him and he pushed it all to his hands where he created a sphere. Intrigued, I walked closer to Gene and went to touch the sphere but Gene moved it out of my reach. He smiled playfully.

"Oh no you don't," he said. "That sphere is made from my energy. It's got several names such as Psi ball, Chi ball or an energy ball. I can use energy manipulation to move objects by sending my energy over it or I can do great harm by throwing it at a bad entity. I can play with the psi ball and turn it into different things like a pyramid or a cuboid, amazing things like that... Watch."

Gene closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them he had a brilliant smile on his face as he moved his hands swiftly to create something I thought to be impossible. He had created a pool of water in his hands. Despite the soft golden color, you could have mistaken it for the real thing. My hand suddenly reached out to touch it and I felt warm. A burst of happy energy flowed through my hand and a laugh escaped my lips.

Then Gene flicked his wrist and the water fell from above us, just like rain. I held my hands out to try and catch the water and smiled as it started to pool in my hands. But then I frowned as it disappeared from sight. I looked over at Gene, who was now holding a golden crystal. Amazed, I stared at it. Never would I have imagined that something so beautiful could be created using your own energy.

"Anyway," Gene said while turning the energy back into a sphere. He widened his hands and the sphere grew bigger. "We are going to practice amplifying this mass of energy. That's what you will do with Oliver in your next lesson with Martin, I believe, so I want you to be as prepared as possible."

Smiling enthusiastically I asked, "Will you also teach me to make those amazing things with my own energy? Ohhh please... I really want to."

Gene laughed and nodded. He made the sphere disappear and looked over at me. "Hold your hands as if you were about to catch a ball a little bigger than a baseball, and smaller than a softball... Very good. Now I am going to throw the psi ball at you and I want you to try and catch it. Once you have caught it, you have to visualize a strong shell around it. That will make sure the energy doesn't escape to the environment."

I watched as Gene conjured up the sphere of glowing energy. He moved his hands and in no time at all, the psi ball was coming at me. I positioned my hands as if I were going to catch it (which I hope I do) and then waited for it to come.

Thankfully the psi ball was in my reach and I stepped forward in order to catch it. Quickly I envisioned a snail shell - don't ask, it's a shell isn't it? - around the sphere and then looked hesitantly down at my hands. There was the psi ball, I couldn't see a shell on it but I could feel it there. It was just hidden.

"A snail shell." Gene mused. "Nice choice! Now I want you to stretch the distance between your hands and picture it getting bigger. When you think it's big enough, throw it back to me."

I did as he said. I watched it grow bigger just by my sheer will power and hand movements! Then when it was about the size of a small football, I threw it back over to Gene. He caught it quickly and then made it even bigger himself. It was the size of a basketball now... It was quite large now.

He then passed it back over to me and told me to make it grow even more. Gene and I passed it back and fourth until I struggled to make it any bigger. And then he threw it as far as he could. From a distance away, I saw a silent explosion of a golden glow. It stretched across the astral plane, lighting it up.

Averting my eyes, I turned back to Gene who was playing his energy. "You want to learn how to create something with your own energy, so we'll do it now."

"While there are many energy sources to pull from when creating a psi ball, in this instruction, we will use the earth because it is close to us and has a vast amount of energy. Start to visualize roots growing from the base of your spine reaching down into the solid earth. You are connected with the earth, bound to the soil, perfectly grounded. Allow the earth's energy to move up with the roots, filling every inch of your body. Gather this energy, allow it to pool in your solar plexus, and once you have a good feel for the energy there, hold your hands out, keeping them steady." Gene said.

He waited for me to do this and then continued speaking.

"See the hole in your hand. A small door has been unbolted and the energy is flowing out. Feel the energy swirling and building up between your hands. Make the energy into a ball between your hands, making it more and more dense as you add energy. The psi ball can be in any color you want, but for beginners it's usually easiest to visualize the psi ball as a white light. After a while, you should be able to sense the psi. It could feel like heat, magnetic-force, pressure or tingling. When you feel this, move your hands closer together a bit, if there is a resistance sensation, however slight, you know it's there. Continue to compress the psi balls as more and more energy flows down your arms. As the psi ball gets bigger, just move your hands slightly further apart until you make it as large as you want it to be."

I nodded and did as he said. It was surprisingly easy to do. But that's what I like, it was easy enough for an 'idiot' like me.

"If you ever have difficulty creating a strong enough psi ball to feel, try drawing more energy and adding that energy to it. It may take practice to make a strong enough psi ball to physically see, but you should be able to feel it fairly quickly. If you haven't decided to do something with it, release the energy of your psi ball by allowing it to diffuse into the air." Gene finished.

I let the psi ball that I had created go back to it's environment and waited for Gene's next instructions.

"Visualization is a key point when trying to make something," He started. "It should be pretty easy and you are a quick learner so I will leave you to it now."

I repeated the process of drawing in energy and creating a small sphere out of it. Hm, what should I make out of it? Then it hit me, I created distance between my hands, expanding the energy and then visualize something. I picture that crystal Gene had made before but this time it was white and felt a little cold. Not liking the outcome, I changed it. I thought of the color blue, like the narcissist's eyes. And then in my hands, I held a small blue crystal. It was pretty.

"Well done," Said Gene patting me on the shoulder. "Have you tried changing its temperature?"

Shaking my head I tried just that. I wanted it to be a warm feeling just like Gene's. So then I thought of warm things and the memories that went with it. I pictured one day when I was eating warm soup after being outside in the rain for a while and the happy feeling I had afterwards. But then I felt an excruciating hot pain in my hands and then I dropped the crystal. I heard a faint smash and the energy went back into the environment. Wow, it's so realistic.

"Nice try," Gene laughed. "Anyway we can try that again, Oliver's calling for you but he can't get to you because you have blocked him off. Bye Mai."

Then Gene reached forward and pushed me backwards. I was going to scream bloody murder at him when I realized that I had already left the astral plane. I opened my eyes to see that there was a cup of tea placed beside the laptop, I was leaning against someone and I had a blanket draped around me.

"Welcome to earth Mai," Came Oliver's greeting. He picked up the cup of tea and drank it within a minute. The tea loving narcissist he is has a record time! Just under a minute he can drink a cup of tea. I don't know whether I should be proud, disgusted or worried for the guy.

"Afternoon," I mumble and then I stretch and move away from him slightly. Then my realization came...

I had fallen asleep next to Oliver, no, more like leaning on him. And then he put a blanket around my shoulders and didn't move from that position for some time. Was the guy feeling okay?

"I found some things out about some of the other members," Oliver said. I gestured for him to continue. "Well for the starters there is us two, then Masako. Do you remember John Brown from that party your stepmother put together? Well he is a member. And so is your stepmother actually... Ayako her name is, right?"

To say that I was shocked was the least of things! I thought that I was finally free of Masako0 and Ayako and it turns out that they were destined to be with me since before we were even born! Just give me a break, seriously!

"I found out something else as well," Oliver interrupted my musings. "Ayako isn't actually Masako's mother. The two of them are friends and they both knew of the prophecy before you did actually. They know something which we do and they aren't going to share it by the looks of things, maybe that's why you weren't treated that nice. Well anyway, Ayako is in contact with the other members bar one who I know personally. He's in China at the moment and won't becoming back for a while yet."

"Woah, you figured out a lot while I was asleep. Anything else?" I asked.

"Yes," Oliver paused. "We are going to meet some of them tomorrow after dinner. Make sure you aren't late otherwise I will leave without you."


	8. Chapter 8

AN: I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. (It's really appreciated...) I am glad the story is getting a lot of views, it keeps me writing chapter after chapter :)

**Disclaimer: **Sadly, I do not own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter eight!**

**Yasu's point of view**

* * *

I was sat in the library... yet again, doing some research on the supernatural. It was currently my favorite new pat time, researching things to do with the paranormal. Every day after school with out fail, I would come to the library. Sometimes a friend of mine named Takigawa (who I call Monk) comes. He is a monk, hence the nickname, and he too has a fascination with the supernatural.

I was in the middle of writing down some notes on psychical abilities when the man himself suddenly sits down in the seat opposite me, holding two books. They were quite old and both had the title 'Worthington Manor'.

"What's this?" I ask rather intrigued as to what his response would be. I grabbed one of the books from his hands and flipped through, quickly taking in a snippet from each page. A smile played at my lips, so Monk has finally figured something out...

"I don't know," Came Monk's reply, he was glaring at me. "How about you explain since you already had books in your possession even though one of them is addressed to me."

I laugh a little. "I believe that it is addressed to the great grandchild of a monk named Takigawa-san. There's no mention of you in there."

"For an amazing researcher you sure are stupid, aren't you?" Monk started, he was scowling. "My great grandfather was a monk going by the name of Takigawa-san. And considering I found the book locked inside a box in your room along with a few other things of mine, need I say more?"

"Oh Monk you flirt! What were you doing prying around in my things?" I say playfully. Teasing Monk was another favorite past time of mine.

"I thought I told you to knock it off Yasu!" Came Monk's menacing reply. He had a half frown half scowl on his face which made me laugh.

"Anyway, back to business," I say crossing my arms and wearing a serious expression. "The both of us play a part in a prophecy made long ago. We are a key part in it and we are destined to finish our ancestors' work before it gets out of hand. There's also something about love to do with a few members, it's quite confusing. I won't go into too much detail."

Confused, Monk said. "Members? Members of what? And what is our ancestors' work?"

Sighing, I replied. "Our great grandparents were ghost hunters, however some of them had psychical abilities such as being a medium or having some level of PK. Other members were either a monk, a miko, a priest or or people practicing in parapsychology. Your great grandfather was an amazing monk in the group."

"Um, one more thing... Why is there something to do with love when we are supposed to be ghost hunting?"

I smiled slightly and gave my explanation. "Two members of the group are destined to fall for each other. It's unsaid about who they are or why they fall in love, but they do. So when we meet the rest of the group, make sure to watch everyone carefully. I want to see who they are."

I left out a few bits there. One of them was supposed to fall in a pit of loneliness and despair, the other one was supposed to be the one to pull them out. I packed all of my things into my satchel and stood up. "Come on, let's go see Ayako. She has been waiting for the day where you find out for ages now."

Monk and I rounded a corner that lead to Ayako's home after a five minute walk of question after question. I just can't wait until we get there so that Monk can question Ayako instead of me for once. Just because I am an amazing researcher and know a lot about this prophecy, does not mean I am the only one...

I stopped short of her drive way, a little surprised. There was a black car there with the royal crest on the front of it. What was it doing there?

"Come on Yasu, stop dawdling." Monk said dragging me to the door and inviting himself into Ayako's home. He called out for her and she said she was in the living room. We followed the sound of her voice and noticed that there were two other people in the room with her. Who were they?

"Monk! Yasu!" She said gesturing for us to come in. "I assume you remember why I called you here."

I nodded and sat down on one couch next to a pretty girl about my age. She had shoulder length brown hair and the sweetest brown eyes I have ever seen. She smiled a little bit at me and said a hello. I nodded in response and turned back to Ayako. "Not to be rude or anything, but who are these people?"

"They're members," She said quickly while pacing back and to. A look of surprise washed over me. They were? But the car outside had the royal crest on it. Were they of royalty? No, they can't be. The girl I have never seen in my life and I'm sure her face would have been shown to the public if she was.

But what of the boy. He had his back to us and was facing the garden. He had messy black hair and wore a long black coat that reached his shins. Was he royalty? I'm sure Ayako would have told us if someone as high up as that guy was coming over... So maybe I am jumping to conclusion. He's can't be.

"Could you elaborate Ayako?" He said shifting my gaze to the girl beside me. She was deep in thought and was playing with the hem of her shirt.

"The boy over there is Oliver Davis and his companion is Mai Taniyama, a girl I took under my wing after I met her father. They are members of the group. Oliver, Mai, this here..." She said pointing at Monk. "Is Houshou Takigawa, but everyone calls him Monk. And the other one is Yasuhara Osamu, but everyone calls him Yasu. Now that the into's are out of the way, would you like tea?" Ayako said.

I was about to reply when Mai interrupted me. "Don't trouble yourself Ayako, I'll do it."

The boy, Oliver, finally turned around and I gasped. It was_ the_ prince, the prince! I didn't know what to do. Do greet him properly? Get down on my knees?!

"I'll go with you Mai," He said walking over to the door and waiting for Mai. She lazily got up and followed him out. Suddenly I was confused! What exactly just happened then? They seem too close for a prince and a commoner. Wait... was she a commoner?

"Well they seem awful chummy," Monk said sitting down beside me. He had a thoughtful expression on his face. What's up with him?

"I noticed," Came my mumble of a reply.

Ayako sat down with us. She fiddled with her clothes before saying anything. She said, "Uh huh. And I think I know why."

"You mean... They could be the..." I was struggling to find my words. The whole prince thing was still going over my head. But would the royal family, not to mention the public, like the idea of a commoner suddenly ruling the land with the prince after they fell in love? I don't think it will sit too well.

Ayako nodded and then Monk smiled slightly in understanding. Ayako said, "They might not even be the destined couple though, we could just be jumping into conclusions. I noticed that Monk does that an awful lot. And anyway, if they were the destined pair, it would break Masako. How would she feel?"

Hm, Masako would be devastated. I know that she has always wanted to be of royalty and has a small crush on the prince. Maybe we shouldn't tell her.

There was a clattering sound and then the prince and Mai came back into the room. They set the tray of cups down on the coffee table and each grabbed a cup. They sat next to each other on the couch. I decided to watch them for a little bit, after all that's what my original plan was, right?

Mai kept glancing over at the prince, he was doing the same. Then one of them glared at the other, the other had an expression I couldn't quite decipher and then that person glared making the other have that expression. The whole thing confused the hell out of me. What the bloody hell was happening?!

Maybe they are having a silent conversation with each other. That could be it! Maybe they have a telepathic link or are emotionally bond together. But it still creeps me out a lot. I wonder what the two of them are talking about?

"So then," Ayako interrupted me from my musings. "Now that we are all here, what should we do? Masako is till in school, and so is John. I have asked the two of them to come here once school finishes."

"I say-"

"Yasu, no one wants to hear what you are saying. Will you leave your stupid suggestions out of this," Monk said.

I growled a little. "And why should I? You know, your always complementing me saying that I am an amazing researcher one minute and then calling me stupid the next! Make your mind up! Which is it?"

Monk sighed and rubbed his arm. "It's both Yasu. Anyway, I say that we think of what to do first. Do we open a business somewhere? Do we get to know each other better beforehand? Do we just start to ghost hunt randomly until we feel satisfied?"

I raised and eyebrow at this. Really Monk? Just randomly ghost hunt until it satisfies our needs? We are defiantly not doing that, especially if Monk says so.

"I think we start a business first," Said the prince while he placed his cup back down on the coffee table. I notice that he keeps glancing at me, deep in thought. What? He's not gay is he? As much as I admit he is handsome, I am not going to go out with him or anything.

"Why is that?" Ayako asks. "We barely know each other well enough to just open up a business and start ghost hunting. We haven't got any ideas where about we would have the office, we don't have any equipment, we don't even have all of our members here to discuss this. What makes you so sure they will agree to this? Masako surely will... or maybe not. But John, he wouldn't... or would he?"

I couldn't help but crack a smile at Ayako's flustered state. The last time she was like this was when she came to Monk and I telling us about the prophecy and how she will have to act horrible to a girl so she won't find out about it. But it seems like that dream is over now, well it did last about three years so it's about time the girl figured things out. Ayako practically gave up on that dream when she invited the royal family over to her home. However, there is something.

There's something she is hiding from us all and I don't think she plans on sharing. Maybe it's to do with Mai, and her part in the prophecy.

"For starters," I heard the prince say. "That is what is best for now. I'm sure that the other two will comply. Even if Father Brown were to disagree with us about this, him and Mai are close friends. I'm sure she'd be able to persuade him." I noticed he said that last bit with a hint of jealousy. Maybe he isn't gay!

"I don't think John will disagree anyway," Mai said happily. "I think he will enjoy it, knowing him."

Ayako and Monk gave a huff and finally agreed. Monk said, "Hm, it's all well and good us deciding this but where will it be? I'd suggest somewhere in the village, it will be better for the villagers and us that way. It's easier getting to homes and them coming to us."

I nod, "Uh huh. That sounds great and I have the perfect place. I just hope it is still in good condition and still unsold."

I take out my phone and go on the map of the town. I go to Shibuya Village and then into all the properties that need to be bought. Aha! I smile in satisfaction upon seeing the property for sale. It looks like all the luck on earth is on our side today.

"The property is still unsold. It looks like we have our office."


	9. Chapter 9

AN: I hope you enjoyed my story so far. Thank you for any reviews, follows or favorites. (It's really appreciated...) I have a new idea for a Ghost Hunt story and I have actually started to write the first chapter. I don't know whether to just continue with this story first or to start on the next. I'd really like to hear what you guys think. But i might actually write a few chapters of each story and see how that goes from there. Feel free to check them out, I would love it if you did.

_And I will apologize now but this chapter will be quite short so that I have more time to start writing the other stories. sorry..._

**Disclaimer: **Sadly, I do not own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter nine  
**

**Back to Mai's point of view**

* * *

As soon as John and Masako came back from school, we all set off to our new office. Yasuhara, being the amazing researcher and computer wiz, had already bought the place and called the owner to leave the key in the mailbox so we could get into the place.

I was in the same car as Oliver, Yasu and John. A butler from the castle was driving us to the office, whereas Takigawa had borrowed a car from Ayako and the others were riding behind us. The ride was quite quick and we were out sooner rather than later. To my joy, too. Oliver chose to be quiet and read through his copy of Worthington Manor, trying to pick up on anything that we might have missed. Meanwhile John and I were talking about what had happened over the past few days. And Yasu just sat there eying Oliver and I suspiciously the whole time.

It was a little too awkward for my liking...

"We're here," The butler announced as he turned off the engine, got out and opened the door for Oliver. The two exchanged a quick nod in thanks and Oliver walked away. The rest of us quickly following behind him.

Yasu skipped - yes, I said _skipped _- over to the mailbox and stuck his hand inside to reveal a small silver key. He handed it to John who took it and opened the office. I pushed the door open and we all stood there in awe.

It wasn't an ordinary office, it was more like a little apartment. Nonetheless, it was pretty amazing! In the main room was quite large and it led to several over rooms consisting of two offices, a kitchen and a lavatory.

I was the first to walk in and I leap onto the couch, making myself very comfortable. I here someone snort and look up to see Oliver looking down at me, with an amused glint in his eyes before it disappeared and he sat beside me on the couch. I was a little confused. It was like Oliver had been clinging onto me all day especially when Masako walked into the picture.

What was he playing at, I wonder...

Hours later, all of us were sat in the new business place, in the main room, drinking tea that _I _was forced to make. We were talking about ourselves and sharing secrets and knowledge about the prophecy. All in all, we were learning so much more than when we were all on our own.

"So," Monk started. "All of us are in this group of supernatural researchers and we have to accomplish something before it turns even worse than it already is. But we can take as long as we like searching for Worthington Manor that has been taken of the map ever since the 1800s."

"There aren't any records of the manor after 1890, it's like the place was forgotten about. And the only thing that remains of the manor, is the books we all carry." John piped in after downing his cuppa.

"Exactly." Oliver said. "That's exactly it. The manor itself is like it has disappeared from the face of the earth. We can spend years trying to find and probably won't..."

I frowned. "Gee Naru, way to make our spirits rise."

Everyone turned to face me, eyebrows raised. I gulped and nervously laughed. "What?"

"What did you just call me?" Oliver said a little shocked and intrigued.

I laughed again (but normally this time). "I called you Naru. Naru is short for narcissist. So Naru-chan, care to explain?"

Oliver, or should I say Naru, sighed but I saw the ghost of a smile on his face. "What I mean is we might not ever find it if we are searching for new evidence. The manor has been around for so many years, that it might have been forgotten. No one will know about it unless they were alive back then, which highly unlikely. Only sorcerers have been alive for just as long. Huh, that's it! Sorcerers!"

Sorcerers?! Where in this day and age are we going to find a damned sorcerer? It seems like Monk had the same idea as me, he said "Um Naru-chan could you elaborate? I don't recall any sorcerers living in the area. Do you by any chance know one?"

Naru laughed, actually laughed. He took out his phone and dialed a number, completely ignoring what Monk had said.

"...Hello? Lin are you there? Oh, hello Madoka. Could you please put Lin on the line? It's urgent." Naru said impatiently, he pinched the bridge of his nose and waited for what felt like a long time.

And then someone answered. "Ah Lin, it's you." Naru said. "I need you to fly back over to the kingdom as soon as you can. Bring Madoka too, would you? It's quite urgent. I'll explain properly when you arrive but could you of some research on Worthington Manor?"

There was a pause and a shout from the other line.

"Lin? Lin please calm down. I just need you to do some research. And yes, I did say _Worthington Manor _have you got a problem with that?"

There was another pause and another few shouts before Naru had the hung up. He seemed a little pissed, I don't want to anger him any more. I was curious so I asked the question no one dared ask. "What was that about?"

Naru seemed to growl a little but answered nonetheless.

"It seems that the sorcerer is unable to help us directly but he gave us something to go off," He bit his lip. "Worthington Manor was destroyed in a fire. Purification by fire, that is. We are unable to do anything at the moment. But seems like he is not telling us something."

And with that Naru left to go to his new office, he slammed the door and everyone jumped. I sighed, got off the couch and walked to the kitchen. I made a cup of tea for the boss and went into his office.

Sighing I said, "Now what was it really about?!"

Naru looked up at me, amusement dancing in his eyes before it left just as quick as it had appeared.

"Worthington Manor does still exist but no one has come back after finding it. All outside connections were out of use whenever someone reached the manor. No one is able to leave that place, and everyone that has, died trying." Naru took the tea and sipped quietly.

I gulped. "So what do we do now then?"

He shrugged. "Unless we get a better lead then we don't know for sure. But I am not risking several people's lives just to find the place. It's stupid and childish to do something like that. So we will just run SPR until and gather any information that we can possibly can while we are at it. Yasuhara will be good for that, you should ask him but in private. I don't want the others knowing just yet."

I nodded and silently got up and headed towards the door. "And if we don't find out anything?"

"Then we are stuck, as stuck as those people in the manor." Came his reply.

"And what if we do?"

"I don't know. We'll see when the time comes. But the place is like the... " He mused. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Is like what Naru?" I said.

"The place is quite alike to the Bermuda triangle, don't you think?"


	10. Chapter 10

AN: Thank you to anyone that views, reviews, follows or favorites. It's really appreciated :) I hope you are enjoying the story and I am sorry that I haven't updated for a few days. I was working on another Ghost Hunt story called _Criminal. _Feel free to check it out any time.

The cases I will use in the story will all be ghost stories from this website: . But I will add some of my own things to the cases so if you want the real story just visit the website. I hope the stories make the case more interesting. Stay reading to find out more...

**Disclaimer:** To my dismay, I do not own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter ten  
**

I was currently with Gene in the realm of the lingering spirits. He was in the middle of telling me about the first case we were going to get. And it sounded quite interesting actually. Although, Gene couldn't tell me much about it. It was interesting nonetheless!

"Mai, in this case you will have to stay with someone at all times. This is serious stuff, make sure that all the girls are with someone male all the time. It's very dangerous... I mean it Mai. If all of you girls go off alone without a male escort I will personally kill you myself before the devil does."

I stared at him, my mouth agape and eyebrows raised. The devil?! What has the devil got to do with anything? "D-devil?" I squeaked.

"Yes Mai," Gene said. "I'm going to tell you a story now. A story about someone who was a victim of the devil. I want you to listen carefully, okay?"

I nodded and waited for him to speak. I was getting a little nervous at his long silence.

"The girl hurried through her schoolwork as fast as she could. It was the night of the high school dance. The girl was so excited about the dance. She had bought a brand new, sparkly red dress for the dance. She knew she looked smashing in it. It was going to be the best evening of her life. Then her mother came in the house, looking pale and determined. '_You are not going to that dance,_' her mother said. '_But why?_' the girl asked her mother. '_I've just been talking to the preacher. He says the dance is going to be for the devil. You are absolutely forbidden to go,_' her mother said." Gene paused before continuing.

"The girl nodded as if she accepted her mother's words. But she was determined to go to the dance. As soon as her mother was busy, she put on her brand new red dress and ran down to the K.C. Hall where the dance was being held. As soon as she walked into the room, all the guys turned to look at her. She was startled by all the attention. Normally, no one noticed her. Her mother sometimes accused her of being too awkward to get a boyfriend. But she was not awkward that night. The boys in her class were fighting with each other to dance with her." He stopped when I had laughed.

"Later, she broke away from the crowd and went to the table to get some punch to drink. She heard a sudden hush. The music stopped. When she turned, she saw a handsome man with jet black hair and clothes standing next to her. '_Dance with me_,' he said. She managed to stammer a '_yes'_, completely stunned by this gorgeous man. He led her out on the dance floor. The music sprang up at once. She found herself dancing better than she had ever danced before. They were the center of attention. Then the man spun her around and around. She gasped for breath, trying to step out of the spin. But he spun her faster and faster. Her feet felt hot. The floor seemed to melt under her. He spun her even faster. She was spinning so fast that a cloud of dust flew up around them both so that they were hidden from the crowd."

Gene glanced at me before finishing the story. "When the dust settled, the girl was gone. The man in black bowed once to the crowd and disappeared. The devil had come to his party and he had spun the girl all the way to hell."

I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. And this really happened?! Gene had said that it was about the first victim... Did it happen more than once?

"Do you understand why I want all of the females to be escorted by males?" He said. "I don't want any of you going to hell just because you danced with the devil. But it isn't really the devil. When this started to happen again, it was another thing sent from hell. A demon. It should be exorcised quickly."

I nodded in understanding. "Okay and how do you suppose we do that? It's a demon, for god's sake!"

There was a pause before he answered. "Come on Mai. You have a priest and a monk on the team that are able to exorcise it. All you have to do is make a plan. Whether that is to go undercover as high school students or just barge into the dance and exorcise it there and then, it shouldn't be that difficult."

I huffed, "If you say so Gene. Anyway, can you send me back, I think that Naru is calling for me."

I felt the familiar tingly sensation in my head and it was starting to get on my nerves. Gene nodded and pushed me back wards into the world of the living.

"ai... Mai... Mai..." Someone was calling.

I opened my eyes and looked up to see that everyone was staring at me. I rubbed my eyes and sat up, yawning loudly.

"Welcome back to Earth, Mai." A cold voice said. "Care to tell us what that was about?"

I nodded at Naru and began to tell that story the best I could, and the exorcism plans. Some of the looks I was getting were dubious or some people were thinking hard about it. At least a few of them believe me wholeheartedly. I turned to Naru.

"It's about the next case. Did you get anything like that on the list, I know we already have a few requests." I said.

Naru nodded with an eyebrow raised, "Yes, as a matter of fact, we do. It will be at a local high school who are having a dance in two days. We have to go check it out."

"When? And not to bring you down or anything Mai," Monk said. "But I don't really believe it. How can someone dance us all the way to hell?"

"How am I supposed to know Monk? But I believe that it's true. And we already have the case, so I think you'd best start believing then." I said, a bit irritated.

Monk looked a little surprised at my sudden... outburst. He looked at his shoes and then back up to me before giving me a slight nod. He was going to try and believe that story I told. I doubt he will straight away until he sees something with his own eyes. But at least he will try.

"Can I continue now?" Naru said. We gave him a nod. "Good. Anyway, we will be leaving for the school tomorrow morning. 8 o'clock sharp. I want you all here a little bit before then. Understand Mai? That means you will have to wake up earlier so that we can get here."

I scowled at him. "If you're that worried why not just wake me up?"

He glared and I glared back. The room went silent as they watched us begin our glare war. But John stopped us. He coughed, clearing his throat. "If you don't mind," He said. "I will be going now. We should all get some rest for the case. I think it will be quite tiring. G'day."

And then he left. The door closed quietly behind him. We all looked at each other before calling it a day.

"Well come on Masako, let's head back." Ayako said going over to the door. "Mai? Are you going to stay at the castle and not come back?"

I paused. I honestly didn't know the answer. Moving in with the Davis' was great fun and all, but they don't expect me to live there forever, do they? I need to move out some time and I was close to the age of buying somewhere to live. But at the moment, I will just stay at the castle.

"Mai will be staying at the castle. Sorry to inconvenience you." Naru said sending me a glare. _What have I done?!_

"Okay then. We will see you tomorrow." Ayako and Masako left. And then it was just Naru and I. It was a little awkward but peaceful too.

"Come Mai, let's head back. Surely father is getting a little worried, he said that he wanted to train us a little more before we went on the case. So it will have to be tonight. We will be passing pk energy to each other this time, and learning to amplify it." Naru said pushing me towards the door so that he can lock it.

I smirk slightly. Oh, if Naru only knew what I was capable of. Maybe he wouldn't call me an idiot... Nah, fat chance. He will probably find some way to ridicule me.

We make our way to the car, sit inside and drive home... I mean, back to the castle.

The journey was a little longer than expected and it was starting to get dark when we arrived. Naru parked the royal black car in front of one of the gardens and we got out. He locked the car and I followed him inside to where Martin was frantically pacing about.

"Father," Naru called. "We're home. Time to start our training."


	11. Chapter 11

AN: I'm sorry that I haven't written in a while. I was ill and was bed ridden so I couldn't do much, my apologies to you who have been waiting. Anyway, some of these reviews that I have been getting made my day. Seriously! Please continue with the honesty that some of them have, I like honesty better than people lying about their opinions. Thanks to anyone who views, reviews, follows or favorites :) And I'm sorry about the link, try typing in american folklore . net (no space between the dot and net) and that should work. Sorry for any inconveniences.

In answer to someone's question on why Naru had the honorific 'chan' on the end of his name, I'm unsure. That is what Mai dubbed him in the manga, maybe he thought he was girly in a way and decided to tease him a little. Even though chan is mainly used for young girls or a female in a relationship. When Monk addresses him in this chapter, I will use 'kun' instead, I think that it fits more.

**Disclaimer: **To my consternation, I do not own Ghost Hunt

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**Chapter eleven**

The next morning we headed out to the local school, round about one pm. The team were split into the two cars. John, Yasu, Naru and I in one, and Monk, Ayako and Masako in the other. We arrived quite quickly, ready to greet the principal for a quick briefing.

We all stood in front of the school, watching the principal slowly walking up to us. He had worry lines, his eyes were constantly wide as if he were scared of something (which he probably was, there _was _a demon going around his school) and his hair was greying with age. He looked exhausted too. _I don't blame the guy! I would be too..._

"Welcome to my school. May I know who is in charge here? Where is your boss?" The principal asked, his eyes scanning the group.

Naru stepped forward, he had a business-like thing to him. "That would be me."

The man drew back instantly, surprise washing over the worry he was feeling. And then he composed himself, walked up to Naru and shook his hand. "Ah... I'm sorry. But you do look awfully young. Will you be certain that this- this demon will be _exorcized?_"

"I'm positive. And don't worry about my age, I get that a lot. Age plays no part in success." Naru replied with a pointed look.

The principal gestured us to follow. We walked into the school, passing several class rooms and students giving us confused glances. And eventually we arrived in a quite large, yet empty room with nothing but a single desk occupying it. The principal leaned against the desk before speaking to us.

"This," He said. "Will be your so called base. There is enough room to set up equipment and anything else necessary to carry out my task. I have asked several students who know anything on the matter to come here for an interview. They should be here shortly. If you need me, then ask one of the students, they should help you. I hope you manage to perform this exorcism, it's driving everyone to insanity. They're all frightened."

We nodded and the principal left the room. We all turn to each other and sigh. This seems like something rather odd is going on here.

"Takigawa, John and Ayako will go and start unloading the equipment. We will need it set up. Masako go and do a walk through of the school, tell me if you sense anything. Mai, wait here until the others go back and then I want you to accompany one of the said three to record temperatures." Naru said.

We nodded and went about our business. Naru sat at the sek and took out this black note book already full of notes. Curious, I went over and tried to get a good long look at it. But I couldn't read what the notes had said. They were unrecognizable, in my eyes. Maybe it was another language? That seems plausable. Naru was a prince, wasn't he supposed to have a lot of knowledge stored up in his noggin? And he _was_ clever.

I moved away from the book before Naru would notice anything and began to pace the room slowly. What was one girl supposed to do while ghost hunting? Wander off on her own looking for danger, just to find it coming round the corner waiting to _eat _her or something?

I don't really fancy doing that. Plus I have clear instructions, it just so happens that I have to wait until one of the others comes back before I can go.

Sighing, I collapse next to Naru and start tapping my fingers impatiently. How long was this taking?!

"Mai do we still have some tea left?" Said Naru.

"Uh huh. I made two flasks of tea. One of green tea and the other of earl grey." I said glancing over to the bag I had brought in with us.

"Get me some."

Irritated, I got up and lazily walked across the floor. I sure was taking my sweet time, just to get one Naru's nerve. But then the bag was at my feet and I had to get him some tea before he had an outburst. He'd probably say something like _where-is-my-tea-Mai?-if-you-don't-get-it-I-will-deduct-from-your-pay! _

I grabbed one of the flasks, took out a cup and poured the steaming hot tea into the cup. It smelt nice, too bad that Naru will mouth of if I drink his precious tea. I place it before Naru just as Monk, Ayako and John come walking in holding our equipment. Funny enough, Ayako was only holding some wires while the other two handles the heavier things.

They were arguing, monk and Ayako. It seems that is all they ever do these days. Fight, fight and you guessed it... _fight!_

"You said that you'd help carry some stuff. But noooo. You only got the wires and walked back without another word." Monk yelled.

"Well sorry that I didn't want to break a nail!" Ayako huffed quickly glancing down at her hands.

"Are you quite finished?" Naru said taking a small sip of tea and glaring at them. "We have several students coming here to have an-"

"Excuse us," Came a small girly voice from the door way.

We all looked over to see a group of girls, anxiously stood at the door. They walked in and approached the desk Naru and I sat at. They flinched as Naru's cold glare settled on them but I could tell that they had already developed a little crush on the narcissist. It was plain as the day.

"We're here for the er, the interview," The same girl said awkwardly.

"Very well. We have a few questions we would like you to answer. But first can you tell us what you know." Naru said sending a quick glare to Ayako and Monk.

"O-of course. When my mom went to this school, years and years ago. She said something was quite odd at her dance. There was a mysterious and gorgeous guy that had asked one lady to dance with them. But when the man reached for her hand, she quivered away because she had been burned. Her hand was suddenly in need of medical attention, even though the guy had just touched her. But they danced anyway and once they had finished, the girl had disappeared completely and no one ever saw her again. It was like she had vanished from the face of the earth." Said the first girl.

"Oh but that's not the entire story." Said another girl. "When she was dancing with the guy she looked at his feet and one was a leg of a goat and the other of a rooster. That's when she then screamed and the devil pulled away from her; and when he disappeared a stench of sulfur was left behind, and the people at the dance stormed for the door. Some of the brave people went outside and called the police ... the girl ends up in hospital with 2nd degree burns, where the devil placed his hands on her. When he was dancing with her and also when she went to the bathroom there in the hospital and looked in the mirror she saw his face (the devil) and later they called the priest. To come and pray for her and story goes on that later she died im not sure if it was at the hospital or at her house. It was horrifying."

"Lots of girls," A third girl started. "Know about this story and have been told or rather, warned about this upcoming dance. Last year, a lot of girls came away with burns and one claimed that her dance partner wasn't human. Like he was something far from it. She was scared and never went to another dance."

"How... Interesting. Is that all?" Naru said. The girls nodded. "If you manage to find out anything else, don't hesitate to come here and tell us."

The girls got up and left leaving the rest of slightly confused. This case was getting more and more strange. But we have lots of people who can perform an exorcism and get rid of it for good. Let's just hope that we do this without anyone getting hurt. Let's just _hope..._

"Naru-kun," Monk said walking into the young prince's view. "This is getting slightly out of hand, if what they said is true. How are we going to do it?"

"We will handle it just fine, Takigawa. It mustn't be all that difficult." Naru replied. "For now we should just make sure the girls are under protection. It seems as though the demon enjoys sending girls to hell instead of the boys."

"Protection?!" Ayako squeaked. "So you mean that either Mai, Masako or myself could be whisked off to hell by some gorgeous demon any minute?"

"Yes Ayako," I replied dryly. "Any minute now..."

She sent me a little glare before putting down the wires she had so helpfully brought in. She huffed and leaned against the wall in thought.

"I think the idiot has a point," She said sending a pointed glance at Monk. "How are we supposed to exorcize the demon if we can't fin it. And if we do eventually find it, what are we supposed to do. I don't think we should cause a panic by suddenly shouting a lot of gibberish to some demon while we are at the dance or in the middle of the hall, and _poof _the demon is gone and the students are freaked."

I let out a little chuckle. "We'll figure it out. Where there is a will, there is a way."

"Ooh, when did you get so philosophical?" Ayako said with her teasing tone. She had one eyebrow raised and a grin on her face.

I scowled but then a thought occurred. "What if we dance with the demon and it actually does pull us away to hell. Will we even come back? Or would we be stuck there for ever and onwards. Oh, the poor girls. They had a date with the devil and a dance with death."

"Nice saying, but in this case, it's the other way around." Yasu said as he came back with Masako.

"Har har. Did you sense anything, Masako?" I asked as soon as she stepped in.

Her skin was unusually pale and she had covered most of her face with the kimono she insisted she wore. "There is defiantly something here. And it is lurking where the dance is supposed to be held. But it's strong, we should take precaution. One of us could lose our lives."


	12. Chapter 12

AN: I will admit that I actually had fun writing this story and I hope that it continues throughout the next chapters. I'm glad that everyone is liking the story and I agree with a lot of the reviews you are writing (e.g. your thoughts or feelings on the story) and I thank you for it. I'm also happy to say that I will write lots of chapters, above 30, and I hope each chapter is as interesting as the next. Thanks to anyone who views, reviews, follows or favorites :)

For those of you who were looking forward to reading about the training between Martin, Naru and Mai, I will include it in one of the next chapters.

**Disclaimer: **Sadly I do not own the anime Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter twelve**

**Yasuhara's POV**

* * *

I am so bored with this case! We've been here for a day now and all we have found out is basically what Mai had told us and a little bit more that may or may not be true. Mai and I recorded the temperatures down and it all seemed quite normal for summer. And when we were recording the temperature in the hall where the dance was going to be held, that was normal too. So why had Masako said that the demon was lurking around there?

We were all placing our thoughts in about the case, and that led us up to now.

The gang were slumped around our base, drinking some tea and trying to get something out of the information. The prince had told us that we will find something eventually, we just have to keep looking for it. Monk was beginning to worry and Ayako was fed up. She think that everyone in the school might be in on some _prank _and are doing this for fun. Mai believes that it is all true.

And I... Well, I'm not sure. There is defiantly something here and even though it's very rare that a demon is preparing for a dance, it's still a possibility.

"We should just leave," Ayako mutters. "It's not like something is going to happen anyway."

"Ayako!" Mai exclaims. "Don't say that! There is a demon here, I know there is. And if we don't set this straight, a poor girl will be sent to hell tomorrow night and it will be our fault for not doing anything to prevent it. We are _not _going anywhere."

"Okay, okay." Was her response.

I know that Ayako didn't mean that, she wanted to believe Mai but was blinded by her own opinions on the case. She was a stubborn miko.

"Maybe we should actually try and do something instead of complaining about how we have nothing about the case." Monk interrupted the fight. "That would be best. I will go and try to get some more history on the place. You guys go and do whatever you want to do. I will be back shortly."

Monk got up and left the room, striding down the hall and out of sight. I sighed, what was I supposed to do? I'm the one that loves to research things. Why was Monk going to dig up some history on the place. It's not like I can go walking up to people and ask them about the history of the dance. Or can I?

"John and I will go and check out the dance hall. Come on John," Ayako said pulling on John's arm until he stood up. They left quickly.

_Then there were three. _The prince, Mai and I sat there for a while before anyone made a move. Naru was reading over his notes with an unreadable expression. Just what was he thinking? You will never know with that guy, he seems a whole lot brighter than he lets on.

I took a hold of my tea cup and began to take a sip. My thoughts were so clouded, I couldn't think straight what so ever. And then I heard a rustling of paper, a cup being placed down and a loud _loud _sigh. I looked up to see Naru standing and making his way over to Mai.

"Mai," He started. "Sleep."

I spat out my tea, it wet my shirt. _Sleep?! _Why would Mai need to sleep? And on a case as well, why would the prince allow that? I fixed my gaze on the two of them, waiting for an argument to play out before my very eyes. But I was surprised. Mai yawned and lay down on one of the couches that had been brought in.

"Okay Naru," She said. "I'll sleep. I'll tell you what I find out."

Find out? What was Mai going to find out by falling asleep in the middle of the day? I am so confused right now. What was going on?!

I watched as Mai curled up and closed her eyes. I watched as Naru walked away and sat back down at the desk. He took out his phone and put in on the desk. He looked at it expectantly. As if it was going to ring any minute. And it did.

"Hello?" He said. "Ah, Lin. Any news?"

So it is that Lin character again, the sorcerer. He replied. I could hear the low murmur of his voice.

"Okay. Fine. Whatever." Naru said through gritted teeth. "Is that all. I am a very busy man, Lin... And yes, I am aware that I am still a minor. I never asked for your input now, did I? ...Anyway, you can't stop me Lin. I know what I am doing and even if it does hurt her, she is very much willing to comply. She will follow us, with her own free will. We will do this, you can tell father that it's not too early. She will be fine, I'm here aren't I? I've gone through this many times with _him _so I am sure that I know what I am doing. When do I ever not know what I am doing?"

Naru didn't wait for a reply. "That's the end of it, Lin. Call me tomorrow for an update. We should have finished this case by then. I trust her knowledge, and _he's _helping her even if he doesn't realize it yet. He is doing it unconsciously. But she knows fully well what is going on. Goodbye Lin."

He put the phone down and turned to me. "Was my conversation interesting, Yasuhara?"

I gulped and slowly turned away from him.

* * *

**Mai's POV**

* * *

When I went into the realm of lingering spirits, I was surprised to see that Gene wasn't there. I was alone in what I thought to be the dance hall in the school we were currently in. The room was decorated accordingly: long table across one wall full of cups and food and drinks, several tables on the furthest saide of the room, a DJ was setting up in another corner and there were people starting to walk in.

The clock struck nine, and that was when the dance really started. Floods of people disrupted the calming atmosphere as they turned up the music and began to chat rather loudly. That wasn't the only _loud _thing in the room. The people, preferably girls, were wearing brightly colored dresses with funny looking hairstyles. The males of the room were all wearing suits of various colors; the usual black and white and grey, but then there were odd colors like green and several shades of red.

There were people sat down, stood or dancing the hearts out. But then all stopped when a boy clad in a black suit walked into the room and a girl in a beautiful red sparkly dress came gliding in from the opposite side of the room. I watched as the two of them looked at each other, the distance between them starting to close. People cleared space for them, scrutinizing their every move. A few guys went over tot he girl and tried to dance with her, but she refused. And the male was occupied with making his way through a crowd of girls.

The two met in the middle and stopped in their tracks. The man bowed down, taking the girls hand and pulling it to his lips. She blushed a brilliant red and then guided him over to the dance floor. The boy took the girl in his arms, and the girl wrapped her arms around the boy's neck and they started to sway to the music. Soon people started to around them but they kept glancing over at the two gorgeous people.

I watched as they continued to dance, getting lost in the music. I could tell that the girl was enjoying herself. She seemed to redden whenever the boy touched her or brought her closer to him. And he seemed to enjoy watching her amusing responses to this. He took a hold of her wrist and they stopped dancing.

The girl, although thoroughly excited, was very nervous. Her eyes darted here and there, looking at the boy to see what he would do next. He twirled her around and then smoke filled the dance floor. But he continued to spin her so that she was dizzy and out of breath. She tripped over her feet and fell.

Where she went was a mystery. How it happened was unexplainable. What had happened was mystifying. But it had happened. The girl was gone.

"Weird, huh?" Someone asked.

I turned around to see Gene. He too was wearing a suit, it was black with a red rose in the pocket. I couldn't help but notice that he had a striking resemblance to Naru. Well _obviously!_ They are twins after all. But I couldn't help but realize that if Naru put on a suit, he would look like this.2

"Finished ogling?" I snapped my head up to look at Gene. Who was strangely acting like Naru and quite frankly, it scared me a little bit. Just a little...

I nodded blushing a light pink color. He laughed lightly and we walked over to an unoccupied table. We sat there, watching the people resume their dance. The man had bowed and walked away, so we couldn't see what ever else he was planning. Such a shame, it would have been really helpful too.

"Gene?" I said. "Was that the demon? Or the devil?"

"The devil, I think. What you have just witnessed was the dance that started it all off. That girl was the first girl to be danced all the way to hell. Or rather _span_ but you know what I mean. The year after this took place, another girl was dancing with that boy and the same thing happened to her. And then the year after, and so on. It kept happening until finally someone noticed that something was up. Especially because the same guy kept showing up in the pictures."

"And what of last year or the year before? Was it the same guy or was it a different one." I said. "Maybe they clocked on to the fact that people had noticed."

"Maybe so." Gene said. "Last year was the first time the devil didn't show. But one of his 'minions' instead, the demon that showed up last time will show up this time. His human form looks a lot like the form that the devil had taken. So watch out for him. And for all it takes, stay by one of the guys at the dance."

"I know Gene, I know." I replied. "I will stay by Naru, John or Takigawa. I'm not going to stay with Yasu because he will probably hand me over to the demon, thinking that he is some high school student. Anyway, who says that we will be at the dance? Like Naru is going to let us dance. Even if it is for the case."

"Oh, you'll be surprised Mai. Naru will do anything if it means that he gets of a case earlier. Apart from sleep with someone that is. The boy loves himself too much to damage his pride like that. And he knows what he is doing too. Just let him guide you and the team to a victory. It will be fun. Trust me."

"Okay Gene, whatever you say." I said standing up. "Send me back, I think I have spent too long here."

Gene nods and stand next to me. He puts his hand and gives me a _gentle _shove. But not before shouting something that will help us win this battle.

_"Oh and Mai, remember that the demon is not a fan of God. John should be a big help with this one!"_


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites. I hope you guys are still enjoying the story, I know that I am. In this chapter, spr may or may not finish the case. We will just have to find out. Just keep reading.

On another note, I was wondering if anyone was able to get onto that website about the ghost stories. I hope it works for you all.

**Disclaimer: **I will never in my entire god damn life, own Ghost Hunt so don't even ask!

* * *

**Chapter thirteen**

I opened my eyes to see everyone surrounding me. All with their eyebrows raised, mouths hanging open and arms crossed, the team were scrutinizing me.

"Well?" Ayako said.

"Well?" I echoed.

"Tell us what you know. Be quick, we have several hours until the dance starts officially and we would rather this was done before it starts."

I nodded and sat up, the blanket fell from my legs and onto the floor. I stared at it a second before starting to retell what I saw when I was in the realm of the lingering spirits. I told them of the girl's encounter with the devil, exactly what had happened, every single detail. And then of what Gene had told me.

They were silent. Naru was furiously scratching down what I had said into his black notebook. Yasu was eying everyone, waiting for a reaction. And everyone else was looking at Naru, waiting for him to say something. And then he put down his pen and scanned over his notes.

"Get the equipment and pack up, it turns out we didn't really need it anyway." Naru said. "We are finishing this today."

We nodded and went to put away the equipment. I grabbed the wires before Ayako and a few boxes and headed out, the others following quickly behind me. We put away the equipment in the back of one of the cars and walked back inside, trying to ignore all of the students making up crazy stories about us.

"I heard that they are here especially to crash the dance later tonight." A loudmouth girl said.

"Well I thought they were here to get some money off of the principal by pretending to be ghost hunters! What a laugh!" Another said.

I gritted my teeth and continued walking down the hall, the others following in my example. No one wanted to start something we couldn't finish, we have other things we need to take care of. We don't have any time to deal with irritating students that believe everything people tell them.

"Yeah, I agree with you there Suki," Someone else agreed. "They are totally after the money. Maybe they thought that ghost _story _about that girl and the devil was real and decided to buy their way into the school. That's certainly plausible. They're nothing more than fakes trying to make their way in the world."

_That does it! _I was about to do something when Ayako beat me to it. She threw her handbag on the ground, rolled up her sleeves and walked up to group of gossiping girls. They were face to face, the girls were obviously very uncomfortable.

"What," Ayako started through gritted teeth. "Did you just say about us."

The girls shifted their gazes to the floor, refusing to look Ayako straight in the eye. "For _your _information, we are not fake. Did you hear that?_ We. Are. Not. Fake._"

Ayako, already blowing fuses, stormed off to our base just as Naru came out. He had his arms crossed and he had a cold glare fixed on his face. The girls immediately blushed and stared at him. _Great, _I thought, _they are already in love with their prince! What fun!_

"Mai," He called. I turned to face him. "Have you put away the equipment yet?"

I nodded, trying to ignore the girls' angry looks.

"Good. John and I have figured out an exorcism plan. Make sure the others don't damage our reputation even more, this _is _our first case after all."

"Okay, _your highness._" I said. "Anything else?"

"Tea would be good."

* * *

**Hours later, almost time to dance**

* * *

Ayako, Masako and I were in one of the girl's bathrooms at the school. Masako had insisted that if we were to blend in at the dance, we 'must' - emphasize the _must _- look the part. So here we are, getting ready for the school dance that we aren't supposed to be at whatsoever.

I was wearing a bright knee length red dress that clung to my body and had my hair curly, Ayako ever so _kindly _insisted. Masako was wearing a traditional kimono with flowery patterns and Ayako was clad in a long purple dress and she purple high heels. Only God knows how the woman can walk in them!

"Hurry up!" Masako whines as Ayako finishes the last of her makeup. "I want to get there soon so that I can be a flamboyant prick and make my prince fall in love with me!" (_Only joking! _Perfect little Masako would never say something like that). She actually said: "I want to get this case finished so I can leave."

"Okay, okay!" Ayako huffs. She did one last look over Masako. "There. All done. Shall we go then?"

We nod and walk out of the bathroom, Ayako strutting her stuff as she leads us to the dance hall. I was becoming more and more nervous with each coming step I took towards the dance hall. My thoughts were all over the place and it was giving me a head ache. So much could happen...

_What if it fails and one of us girls is dragged down to hell? What if the exorcism just angers the demon? What if everyone gets hurt? _You never know what might happen!

We enter the dance hall and my breath hitches. The room looks exactly like it did all those years ago when the devil's first victim was taken. But there was several alters: spr was here and _ohh _did they all look good. Don't tell them I said that... They do not need an ego boost, especially Naru.

That boy does not need one. He's already as narcissistic as ever, I can't imagine what he would be like if her was worse. _Or maybe I can_, I think shuddering slightly.

"Hey guys!" Monk calls waving at us. We walk over to the rest of the group. I try and ignore all the stares we were getting.

The music starts to get louder, as does the jolly buzz of the dancers as they rush into the dance hall. I didn't like the noise, it was too _foreign _for me. And I see that Naru is exactly enjoying the noise either. My eyes scan over him for a second but lingers over his face. He doesn't appear to be too happy about being here, he also looks quite uncomfortable. I wonder whether it's the fact that he is wearing a suit. A suit which makes him look even more handsome.

Huh, maybe the suit isn't the problem. Maybe it is the attention he is receiving. Some boys were giving him dirty looks while their female dates were gazing at him, drool practically oozing out of their mouths. But that has never seemed to bother him that much. Maybe it's the fact that he is about to lead a group of people into battling a demon in a room full of happy dancers who know nothing of what is going on...

Maybe. But I don't think that is what is bothering him.

That gave me an idea, I could poke around in his mind to try and find the answer. I know that he can't block me out but he will be able to sense that someone is trying to get inside his head. I will have to be very _very _quick to do this. I don't want him to know what I am doing, he will probably torment me for it.

I focus my attention on trying to get into his mind, and to my astonishment, it was surprisingly easy. And I had to pull out because I could feel a migraine coming on. Damn Naru! What the hell is he thinking about?! He must have a lot on his mind if I am starting to get a migraine.

"So," John said. "Does everyone know the plan?"

I nod along with everyone else. But a small part of me was hoping that this demon wouldn't show up. This plan of ours was very risky and it could very well cost one of our lives. If the demon chose to dance with either Masako, Ayako or I then we had to comply. But if he dances with someone else, then we have to stay close by so that we can start out risky plan. I felt quite uneasy.

"That's good. We want to stick by it so that this is done as quickly as possible." John continued. "But anything could happen."

_That's right, _I thought sourly, _within a span of a minute this whole thing could go wrong._

"Exactly," Yasu chimed in. "With that in mind, let's start. I want to get out of here as soon as possible too. I really don't want to stick around."

We split up into pairs, leaving Naru all alone to observe from afar. I didn't blame him, really. I certainly would have done the same if I was in his position. I'd rather not dance or be alone with Yasuhara, who knows what the guy will try! But it's for the case, I have to be with him. John and Monk were taken...

"So..." I said as Yasu and I went over to the table and poured ourselves a drink each. "I have something to tell you about Worthington Manor but you must keep it a secret, Naru's orders."

Yasu nodded, silently asking me to continue.

"The Manor is still there but it is super hard to find and if we ever find it, we might not be able to return from the manor. We will be risking our own lives when we do go in though, well that is if we actually find the place. Naru said that it reminded him of the Bermuda triangle - it's hard to find and you can never leave. We need you to do as much research of it's history up until you can't do anymore. We know you can do it, that's why we are asking."

"I see..." Yasu says. "Okay, I will do my best. Tell the big boss I will report back to him when I have found anything. What do you guys know about it so far? And why was the sorcerer Lin unable to help us?"

I paused to think. "Lin wasn't able to tell us much because the place is so mysterious and information about it is very rare. We know that Worthington Manor does still exist but no one has come back after finding it. All outside connections were out of use whenever someone reached the manor. No one is able to leave that place, and everyone that has, died trying. Many people who have tried to get rid of the manor had tried to burn it, but the manor never burned down."

"That's interesting." Yasu said. "Thanks for the info. I have something to work with now."

I nodded. At least Yasu will stay loyal to us. He will find more information and he will not tell anyone about it. We can trust him, that much I know.

Maybe I should tell Naru now. He was expecting me to tell Yasu the minute he told me about it, but I thought it was best to wait a while before trying anything. Someone could have overheard or tried to interfere. We didn't have time for that, we didn't need anything like that to happen.

_**"Naru?"**_ I asked opening the mental link we had between each other. I was preparing for a head ache, I will have to take something for it later.

I felt a familiar numb sensation in my forehead before Naru replied back. **_"What is it Mai?"_**

**_"I have told Yasu about our little plan. He has agreed to it and won't tell anyone, he promised."_**

**_"That's good that you managed to that one simple task I asked of you days ago, Mai. Well done."_ **I could hear the sarcasm dripping from his words. I scowled at the cup in my hands because Naru wasn't there to scowl at. The narcissist is infuriating...

**_"Whatever. At least I did it!" _**I said becoming annoyed.

Naru didn't reply for a while and I was beginning to worry. But then he spoke mentally, _**"Watch it Mai. We don't want Yasuhara to figure out that we have these abnormal... powers and use them quite frequently. Try and hide your emotions, I know you are an idiot but try just this once. Right now, I can see that you are scowling. Don't do that."**_

I cursed under my breath and looked across the room at Naru who was leaning against a wall with arms crossed. He had one eyebrow raised in a mocking way and it irked me. What was he trying to accomplish by purposely winding me up to get a reaction? Maybe he was testing me... To see whether I would blow our cover.

**_"Thanks for reminding me Naru!" _**I said sending him a quick smirk.**_ "I almost forgot about that."_**

**_"Mai stop talking to me for a minute and stay close to Yasuahara. I think the demon has just walked in..."_**


	14. Chapter 14

AN: I am thankful for all of the reviews, views, follows and favorites :) anyway, I have just read the Ghost Hunt manga for like the millionth time and I remember coming across this bit where Mai offers Naru coffee and then I face palmed. I felt like saying: _"Why did you give the 'tea-loving' narcissist coffee?! No wonder the man doesn't love you!" _But I can't help but feel a little sad towards her. Oh well, never mind... On another note, I have come up with another Ghost Hunt story idea and I desperately want to write it soon. I think you will like it. But I will try and finish this one before I start another. Sorry if this chapter does not meet up to your expectations, I wasn't sure how to write it where you guys are hangin on my every word. Please tell me what you truly think.

And if you haven't guessed it already, the **_bold italics _**writing is when Naru and Mai are communicating telepathically...

**Disclaimer: **I will never own Ghost Hunt and that fact will haunt me for the rest of my life.

* * *

**Chapter fourteen**

**_"Mai stop talking to me for a minute and stay close to Yasuahara. I think the demon has just walked in..."_** Naru told me.

I turned to face the entrance and a stunningly handsome man with a black mess atop his head and slightly tanned skin walked into the room clad in a white suit. My mouth fell agape. _This is the demon?! _He looks like a normal person to me, but looks can be deceiving as my mum always told me. I watched as the 'demon' scanned the room like he was looking for something, or rather someone... He looked from Masako, to Ayako and then his gaze rested on me.

His eyes widened when he looked at each of us and then a creepy yet melting smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Maybe he sensed that we all had links to the supernatural side of life and thought that one of us could be his next _dance partner. _I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up to see Yasu, who was rather tense.

"Do you think that is the demon?" He whispered in my ear. I nodded my head and thought that it would be best if I didn't tell him Naru thought so too, I really didn't want to try and explain this to Yasu. He may be a fantastic researcher able to get his hands on such information but he might want to see a demonstration and I wasn't up for it at the moment. Plus, it was Naru's orders. What Naru says, goes...

"Should we see which girl he goes for or start to dance to grab his attention?" I ask Yasu, my voice barely a whisper.

I looked up into Yasuhara's eyes and noticed that he was panicking a little. Not good, not good, not good! I need him to be calm otherwise we will blow our cover.

Yasu dragged me to the dance floor, all signs of panick had vanished and he had a fake smile plastered on his face. He pulled me closer and I gasped slightly at his sudden action. "Play along." He said in my ear. I nod slightly to show that I had heard.

_**"Anything on your end Naru?"** _I asked the narcissist telepathically.

I noticed him from the corner of my eye and he seemed tense. His arms were no longer crossed but at his stomach where his hand were cupped ever so slightly like he was waiting to catch a ball or something. And then it clicked. He was going to use his PK when things got out of hand.

**_"Don't you dare Oliver Davis!"_ **I said flashing him a stern look but he wasn't looking at me but at the demon. He glanced my way quickly before turning back to watch the demon.

The demon was watching Naru too, and it scared me. Was he going to attack Naru right out in the open? But then the demon walked over to me after scrutinizing Naru. His steps echoed throughout the dance hall, overruling the sound of music and endless boring chatter. He tapped Yasu on the shoulder and asked whether he could dance with me. I saw a flash of uncertainty in his eyes but he agreed nonetheless.

The demon grasped onto my hand and I pulled back in surprise. I felt something... fiery, run through my bones. On my hand was a faint red mark that looked like a burn. My eyes widened when I thought back to those girls' story. That the girl felt something odd when the boy touched her.

The demon rested one hand on my shoulder and one on my waist, like he didn't want me to pull away again. But then I felt the same fiery sensation rush through my body and it startled me again. I looked up at the demon's face and noticed he looked completely normal and not a demon at all. Just like a normal person. A normal person that was in the wrong place at the wrong time and became a minion for the devil, one of his demons.

As I thought some more, I realized that I didn't want to perform an exorcism on him. He was once a normal person who had done wrong, doesn't he deserve a second chance? But even after he was thrown into the pits of hell, he continued to do bad things like take girls' lives away. Maybe there was a reason. Maybe he wasn't doing this because he didn't have a choice. Maybe it was an order from the devil himself, since he couldn't do it.

I felt sympathy for the demon boy before me, even though I didn't know his reasons. After all, he could be doing this for fun and it was a form of entertainment.

We continued to dance for a little while longer before I broke the silence. "W-what is the point in doing this? Taking away the lives of girls, I mean. Is there a certain reason or are you not bothered about the lives of others? I'd quite like to know that before you take me away to meet the same fate."

I don't know where the confidence had came from but when I spoke, I felt it surge through me. And I like it. I wonder if my confidence would last long enough for me to get a rise out of Naru when he tried to make me feel so small. But I may not even be here that long to even try that.

I heard a throaty laugh and was surprised to see it was coming from the demon. "So you know," He said. "You know what I do and ask why I do it. Well that's new. Your the first one to ask such a thing, even for a mere human with psychic abilities of sorts."

"You were human once before, were you not?" I ask giving him a pointed glance. "You shouldn't be quick to judge, everyone is different."

Yet again, I felt so confident in the moment I should have been at my weakest. But there I was, telling a demon who could take my life away with the click of his fingers, that he shouldn't judge everyone so quickly. What was I thinking?!

"Your a strange one, you are." He murmured. Then he spoke louder. "It's been such a long time that I have forgotten the reason why I continue to do this act of cruelty. I took over this line of work after the devil dismissed it and that is all I can remember clearly enough. That's all there is to it."

I was surprised for a few reasons. One) the idiot of a demon had forgotten the reason why he was taking away girls' lives. Two) I had actually gotten and answer out of him and it seemed as though he was telling the truth. Three) he made no effort to kill me there and then but chose to answer my question.

"But shouldn't you stop now, I mean... You have forgotten the reason and you don't seem to understand whether there is a point behind all of this or not. I don't see a reason to continue taking away lives." I said as my confidence suddenly started to disappear with the seconds that ticked by.

The demon shrugged. "I could, but this is almost like a tradition of the sorts. I don't see why I should stop."

"But surely..." I said but the rest of that sentence never came. I didn't know what to say to him. I didn't want him exorcised but there seemed like there is no way to persuade him to stop. What do demons like anyway, it's not like I could give the guy a lollypop and ask him to stop. That's just weird.

"Surely what?" He prompted eying me suspiciously.

"Surely there is another way to pass time than killing off the female population. I would rather keep my life, thank you very much."

He laughed a little and said, "There very well may be, but I guess I haven't found it just yet. I will have to just keep looking for it."

"You could..." I began. "You could try something opposite of bad. Like making sure people are leading good lives to stop them from getting into hell. You could prevent crimes and such, you clearly have the power to do so. Why not give that a try?!

I then slipped a little as my foot got caught on what happened to be thin air and the demon boy tightened his grip on me. I felt a tingly feeling in my head and I let the narcissist in. He didn't seem to happy about something. I wonder what it could be.

"I will think about it." The demon muttered before Naru's voice filled my mind.

_**"Mai, did the plan say to have a friendly chat with a demon? I think not."**_ He said. _**"Stick to the plan."**_

_**"I won't participate in this plan anymore, Naru. I don't want the demon to be gone for good. I am trying to persuade him to chose the good side, to use his powers to help people instead of to take away people's lives."**_ I said trying to make Naru see the light but I could feel his frustration.

_**"Mai..."**_ Came his warning voice. I couldn't help but smirk a little. It was so fun winding him up!

_**"Come on Naru. He said he would think about it for a while."**_ I said._** "Just give the demon some time before we take action."**_

I felt him nod but he continued to watch the demon carefully, keeping the link open between us. I continued to dance with the demon until I started to get a little tired. I need a good long nap later on when I got home. If... If I ever got home.

"Made up your mind?" I asked the demon. He stared into my eyes, sending me a calculating look.

"Maybe," He said. My eyes brightened and I smiled at him. He continued, "It all depends on what the devil thinks really. It's not my choice."

My heart sank. So we would have to stick to the plan after all and exorcise him. But I really didn't want to do it. He was still a part of this world anyway, even if he was a dark part. He still belonged here. It wasn't right to wipe him away from existence. Especially since he was being held a prisoner of the devil.

We stopped dancing and he let go of me. "Are you going to take my life now?" I asked, hoping to the high heavens that he was not.

"I have to bring back a victim otherwise equally bad things will happen to this place." He reached his hand out to touch my forehead. This reminded me a lot of the way Gene shoved me out of the astral plane, although when he did it my head wasn't burning from his fiery touch. My forehead felt so hot, I thought that my head was going to melt away and then the narcissist would have something else to torment me with.

And then I heard some voices. One of them reciting an English prayer and another which was reciting lines of warning magic, preferably from Buddhism. Then it dawned on me. John and Monk were about to exorcise the demon right in front of me, and that isn't what I wanted at all.

"Stop!" I shrieked moving my hands into a position where I could collect energy from the earth around me. And that's what I began to do when I felt a hand on my arm. I looked up. Naru was sending me a silent warning, he didn't want the others to find out. I dropped the psi ball I had made and it went back into the atmosphere. Naru dropped his hand from my arm and turned to watch as the demon was curling into pain. He covered his ears in a vain attempt to block it out.

Sadly, I stood by Naru and watched as the demon was slowly losing himself from the place he once called home. I wanted to do something, but my feet were stuck in the same position. There was a blood curdling scream and then the demon was gone with only the smell of something burning remained.

I inhaled, taking in the fumes of the demon and stood there quietly.

I guess this case was over then, well not until the devil or another demon appears next year with a taste for vengeance.


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Here is chapter fifteen, but you probably guessed that already. Thanks to anyone that reviews, follows or favorites. I hope you enjoy this chapter and please give me any constructive criticism. The whole reason I am actually writing stories on here, is to improve my writing skills - per my English teacher's request. Feel free to comment. Sorry that this chapter isn't much. If you are interested in that story then you can visit that website I wrote down a few chapters ago, the story is called _Bloody Mary Returns. _

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter fifteen**

It's been a few days since we had our first case with the demon, and I have only just gotten over it. Martin has been training us a lot more to take my mind of it and Gene too. We've all been busy these past few days, the others too. They have all been trying to find out some more things about our next case, per Naru's request.

We were all crowded around the coffee (or rather tea) table in the office and I was starting to get very tired. I yawned as Yasu started to present what he had found.

"Gerta was the stepmother of three children and she attempted to kill them of one by one..." Yasu's voice was drowned out as I yawned again and closed by eyes, falling deep into slumber. I had arrived in the astral plane to Gene telling me to watch carefully. And then we were suddenly in a room that was lit by candle light. A girl was sat at a desk, writing in what appears to be her diary. She was reading as she was writing. We listened in eagerly.

"My stepmother was vile. I guess most kids think that when their father remarries. But in this case, it was true. She only married Father because he was rich, and she hated children. There were three of us – me (Marie), my middle brother Richard and my youngest brother Charles. We were the price my stepmother Gerta paid for being rich. And we were all that stood between her and inheriting Father's money when he died. So she took steps against us.

She sent my youngest brother Charles away to boarding school overseas. It had a good, scholarly reputation, but it also had the reputation for being a hard school that was full of bullies and strict discipline. Not a place where a delicate child like Charles, who had been sickly as a baby, would thrive. He was miserable there. Somehow, Gerta contrived to keep him there for all but the summer holidays, and when he came home the first year he was pale and thin with dark circles under his eyes that looked like bruises. He cried – he actually cried! – when Father told him he had to go back to the school. But Father didn't listen to him. Gerta thought it would be good for Charles to go there, and so Charles went.

I did everything I could – encouraging letters and daily phone calls – until Gerta said it was too expensive and restricted calls to five minutes once a month. I even got Father to book me a ticket to Europe so I could visit Charles. Gerta was enraged when she found out. Her blue eyes went so cold it made chills run up my spine, and her pink mouth thinned into a bitter line that bade ill for me since I had dared to interfere. Two days before my plane left for Europe, the school called and told us that Charles had climbed up to the tallest tower and flung himself off. He was dead.

Father was shocked, of course, and Gerta was quietly triumphant. For a few months, Father paid more attention to Richard and myself then he had since our mother died. But Gerta was beautiful and had winning ways about her that soon drew my Father's attention away. And now that one of her hated step-children was dead, she focused on another. Poor Richard was next.

Richard was a sturdy chap who was about to enter high school, and he was really into sports. He would have thrived at the boarding school that had killed Charles. So Gerta sent him to an arts school instead. He hated it, but Gerta had told Father he had "talent", so there he went. (You'd think my Father would have learned his lesson with Charles!) But Richard was a survivor, and he grimly practiced piano and violin when he would rather have played soccer and football. But Gerta was clever. She introduced Richard to a couple of high school boys who were everything Richard craved to be – rich, popular, on the football team. And into drugs. Gerta made sure Richard had a very large allowance, and kept increasing it as Richard was drawn deeper and deeper under the influence. Until one day Richard overdosed, and Gerta only had one step-child left. Me.

I was sure that Gerta knew Richard was doing drugs in his room that day. She knew he was ill and possibly dying in there. If she'd "found" him even ten minutes sooner, his life would have been saved. So said the doctor, and I believed him. But Father wouldn't believe me. He was angry whenever I said anything against Gerta, and told me to hold my tongue. Still, I knew I was next, and I was sure that Father would not live long after willing his fortune over to his wife. I decided that if Gerta got too bad, I would run away and live secretly with my aunt in New Jersey until I turned 18.

From the moment Richard's body was found in his room, I forced myself to be a model child. My homework was done on time, I was polite to Gerta and all her friends, I went on all the family excursions with Gerta and Father – even the dangerous ones like shark-fishing. You can be sure that I took care to be "sea-sick" indoors and stayed away from the edge of the boat. Gerta was clever with her tricks. Everyone thought it was an accident the time we were out shopping and I fell onto the subway in front of an oncoming train. I managed to roll out of the way on time, but it was way too close for comfort.

I had almost decided to run away when my father brought me the sad news that my aunt in New Jersey had died suddenly in her sleep, poisoned by person or persons unknown. I was appalled. How had Gerta known? But she had – I could tell from the smirk on her face.

I went to my room that night and locked myself in to think. I could run away, but the money wouldn't last long. And I'd need to finish high school or my chances of getting a good job were nil. Besides, Gerta would still be out there somewhere. If she could hire someone to poison my only living relative (besides Father), she could hire someone to kill me, whether I was living at home or not.

There was only one thing I could think of. And it was a terrible thing. A family secret passed down from my Mother's side for many generations. It involved a witch named Bloody Mary, who had once tried to kill my many times great grandmother and use the child's blood to make herself young and beautiful forever. The witch had been stopped by the child's father (my many times great grandfather) in the nick of time, and the witch had cursed him as she burned at the stake. Cursed his mirror, and the mirrors of all the men who had condemned her to death at the stake, so that anyone saying her name in front of those mirrors would invoke her vengeful spirit.

The story had gotten mixed up over the years, as it was passed down first in their village and then all over the country. These days, school kids everywhere scared themselves silly chanting Bloody Mary's name in front of darkened mirrors during sleepover parties, and nothing happened to them. So no one really believed in the curse. Of course, no one knew the real story of Bloody Mary. That was a deep secret handed down by the villagers of long ago. But I was a direct descendant, and I knew how to summon the witch. You had to use a mirror owned by someone in the direct blood-line of one of the original families that lived in Bloody Mary's village. And the witch's name must be spoken by candlelight a certain number of times in their native tongue.

It was an evil thing to do, I knew. But it was the only way to save my life. It was either Gerta or me. If I didn't fight back, I was dead. So I took my hard earned money and went out to a specialty store to buy hand-dipped, beeswax candles. Black ones. I followed my mother's directions carefully, placing them at certain intervals around the living room so that they reflected in the huge mirror behind the couch. Then I lit each one, speaking the spell passed down in my mother's family. And I waited. Father was away on a business trip, and Gerta was out at a party with her latest boyfriend. She came home late, and scolded me for staying up to study. Her voice was playful and light – I hated that voice. It made her sound like she was nice. But there was also a note of suspicion underlying her words, and she stared hard at the flickering black candles.

"Holding a séance, little Marie?" she asked, emphasizing the word little, knowing I hated when she called me that.

'I just like working by candlelight,' I said mendaciously, turning a page in my text book.

Gerta frowned. 'You know, little Marie, I think it's time we had a talk,' she said, walking over to the mirror behind the couch and primping her hair.

'Yes,' I said softly. 'We should. You killed my brothers. And my aunt. But I won't let you kill me.'

Gerta laughed. 'As if you stood a chance against me!' she said, fluffing her long blond hair up behind her shoulders.

I spoke the name of Bloody Mary in the native tongue of my ancestors. Once. Twice. Three times. Inside the mirror, the image of Gerta burst into flames, and another face looked out. It was the malevolent face of a twisted old crone, ruined with age, and altogether evil. I ducked behind the chair as Gerta gave a scream of sheer terror, her eyes fixed on the witch. As I watched from my hiding place, heat burst forth from the mirror, blistering her beautiful alabaster skin. I could hear the flames roaring as the witch laughed evilly and held out her arms toward my step mother.

'Gerta,' crooned Bloody Mary. 'Come to me, Gerta.'

And she took my step mother into her arms.

Gerta's terrified scream was suddenly cut off. The flames disappeared as suddenly as they had come. When I peeked out from behind the couch, Gerta and Bloody Mary were gone.

I called Father at his hotel the next morning to tell him that Gerta hadn't slept at home. He wasn't pleased. He called a few of her friends from his hotel room, and quickly discovered she had been carrying on with another man. With several, if the truth be known. Father hated infidelity. He flew home at once to confront Gerta, but she was still missing; presumed run away with one of her flames.

Somehow, Father managed to divorce Gerta without ever trying to find her. And since she had no family in the area except us, everyone accepted the cover story, and no one ever tried to locate her. Gerta was gone for good. And Father and I were safe at last."

Gene and I watched as this girl poured her heart out into her diary and I could help but feel sorry for her. The poor girl... The room started to fade out and then Gene and I stood back in the astral plane, the familiar orbs of light floating around us. Gene turned to me.

"Now you know her story." He said. "You just have to look at the evidence you have found to determine who the ghost is. Good luck."


	16. Chapter 16

AN: I hope you like the last chapter, it was just a bit of a briefing for the case at hand. Thanks to anyone that read, reviewed, followed or favorited. Once again this ghost story I am basing the case off is called _Bloody Mary Returns. _You can find it on www . americanfolklore . net (remove the spaces) in the spooky stories section. Thanks for reading :) I'm sorry for not updating sooner. I was quite busy with family things and then I fell ill all not too long ago. Sorry...

**Disclaimer: **I will never own Ghost Hunt

* * *

**Chapter sixteen**

_**"The feeling of love remains until we forget about the other. Did you know that? Because we can fall in love alone too." ―Shiho Inada**_

* * *

The team and I arrived at a house on the outskirts of Tokyo at about nine in the morning. We unpacked, set up base and our sleeping arrangements and then we all sat down at the dinner table with the owner of the house to discuss possible case ideas. So far we have crossed out the possibility of it being a poltergeist but you never know, it could turn into one soon enough.

"I still think it is a land spirit," Ayako huffed yet again. That's all she ever says, believe me! And sometimes she wonders why we never listen to her.

"Jesus Ayako!" Monk says rubbing his forehead. "Why do you always insist that. We haven't even been here the whole day and haven't gathered enough evidence to back up any statement yet. Stop saying that it is a land spirit, because the likely hood is... It's not! Okay?"

Ayako hit the back of Monk's head and continued eating her dinner. The rest of us (apart from Naru) laughed nervously and started discussing again but quietly. I pondered what I already knew. Marie had two brothers, Richard and Charles. They lived alone with their dad until he remarried a woman named Gerta. She was horrible, only married for money and hated children. She tried to kill off the three siblings but failed with trying to kill Marie because she knew what was coming and called on her ancestor Mary - also known as Bloody Mary. Gerta died and then father and daughter lived happily ever after without having to worry about Gerta again.

But did they? Were they bothered with paranormal activity or did they have a peaceful life? Did Marie go on to have children? Or even grandchildren? How long ago did this all happen anyway? Years? Months? Days even? I don't know but it would be handy to find out. Maybe I should consult with Naru beforehand.

The owner of the house walked back into the room holding out a tray of drinks. His name was Declan, he was an Englishman. He was in his late thirties and had a children of his own. Two boys and a girl. The girl being the eldest of the three, was away at school learning how to be a respectable young lady while the two lads were learning about the family business elsewhere. His wife had apparently died a year or so ago in the house. So we just had Declan to speak to.

"Excuse me Declan." I said as he came to my right and placed a drink down. He nodded for me to continue. "Were you related to a Marie McGann by any chance? Or one of the McGanns? This used to be there family home after... circumstances happened just leaving two of them here. Did you know that?"

I watched as his eyes widened a fraction and his mouth hung agape. He put the tray down, went to his seat and looked at me intensely. "Now I have a few questions for you, Mai. How do you know all of this anyway? I don't believe that there was any record of it anywhere. And in answer to your questions, yes I am a McGann. Marie is my great grandmother. She passed away a few years back. Her child, my grandfather repeated in her footsteps. Got married. Had three children. Wife died. Remarried. Two of the three children died. Second wife disappears. And then it was the same for my mother. And then I suppose that it will happen to me. But I do not plan on getting married any time soon."

My eyes widened with surprise. "I had no idea. I'm so sorry. We will try our very best to get this case solved and leave you to attend to your family in peace. I'm so sorry for intruding. But I believe that it was necessary for us to know so that we can discover more to be able to solve it. For one, I know, there is a pattern in these things. Now we just have to find out who the ghost is and exorcise them. I have a sneaking suspicion that it is Gerta, the second wife of Marie's father. But something isn't quite right..."

I put a finger to my lips and thought hard. What could it be? What could it be? I know deep down that Gerta has a big part in this but there is something that we are missing. But what? I don't understand one bit! How can something so simple confuse someone like me? As Naru would say, I'm an idiot! But that doesn't help me much either.

"Mai? Can you tell me how you know the information on my family's history?" Came Declan's voice again. I sighed.

"Marie was my great grandmother's best friend. When they parted ways all those years ago, they didn't speak of each other a part from the odd thing or two. That's how I know all of that. She told me. I was very interested in my great grandmother's past life before she had started a life of her own." I lied convincingly.

"That explains a little. Marie never really talked of her brothers, her father or of the woman named Gerta so I don't think she would tell us of her best friend." Declan said. "So how are you guys doing with the investigation? I hope it isn't too hard for you to solve. I'd hate for all of... all of this to continue."

"All of what Declan?" I prompted. He was hiding something, I just know he is.

"A-all of... Well, um, my daughter has been hearing crying of a night. And my sons, well my sons both said they felt someone push each of them when they went towards the stairs. But when they turned to see who had done it, there was no one there. No one at all. They were so scared."

_Interesting_, I thought, _maybe it could be Gerta or Marie. _So far, it seems as though it might be Gerta. The crying could be for the fact that she was killed and then she had became an earthbound spirit seeking revenge or something or wanting to continue her unfinished business. Like trying to kill the children, or even just the female one in replacement for Marie. But what if she wasn't looking to kill the female sibling because she was already dead. How did Marie die?

It could have been Gerta that had killed her, couldn't it? I will have to ask that when Declan is feeling up to it. I'll have to consult with Naru and maybe with Yasu as well. He may be able to dig up some information such as her death certificate or other tidbits that could help us greatly on this case.

"It's okay Declan, nothing to worry about." I say giving him a big smile. "But what I do suggest is that you each pack some bags. So that if it happens again, you can immediately move out temporarily until the problem is gone. That will be the best thing to do for the time being. Just hold out for a while longer."

He nodded in thanks and took a big bite of his dinner. He was still anxious. Maybe there was something else he wasn't telling us? Possibly...

My phone rang all of a sudden. I picked up and looked at the caller ID. It was Yasu. Hopefully he had a lot more information to give us. I pressed a button and answered the call. "Moshi moshi."

"Mai!"Yasu said rather loudly. "_Marie... Marie, she was pushed down the stairs and landed quite awkwardly on the bottom of the stairs. Tests results show that it wasn't an accident. She was defiantly pushed. But curtsy of an witness account, there was no one there at the time other than themselves and Marie." _

"Do you think it was her? Gerta?"

"_That is the highest probability right now. We will have to collect more information before we can come to a conclusion. Tell big boss._"

I nod even though he can't see it. "Okay, good work Yasu. Try and find out anything else that may help. Like records of 'accidents' that happened in the house."

And with that, I snapped the phone shut and rubbed my forehead. Everyone was looking at me expectantly, even Declan who had no idea what was going on. I sighed and opened us my telepathic link with Naru. He had to be the first to know since he had the sorcerer looking for information as well.

**_"Marie was pushed down the stairs by an unknown entity. My guess is Gerta,"_**I told him.

He nodded slightly, taking a few gulps of his tea. _**"The sorcerer has found some other things too. I will tell him of the things Yasuhara has found and we will see what he has come across. According to him, this is a big break through to the case. I will speak to him shortly. Meanwhile, I want you to go and take a nap. See if Gene will tell you anything else. If he doesn't then we will get Ms Hara to do a walk through of the house. That might help."**_

I said. _**"What should we tell the others to do in the meantime. Make charms? Cast a spell? What?"**_

_**"Just wait until after dinner. We can find their duties then."**_

I yawned and closed the connection. "Hey guys," I said breaking their quiet chatter. "I'm going to hit the hay. I'm tired."

"Really Mai?" Ayako said a little too loudly. "It's only half past one in the afternoon. If you go to sleep now it will be harder to do so later."

"I know, I know." I mutter getting up. "I'll see you guys later. Don't wait up."

I left the room and quickly went into the first guest bedroom that I found. The room looked familiar. There was a simple desk with a few black candles laying down on their side. There was a small bed with white duvet covers. The room wasn't overly large but it wasn't small either. But it did look quite old.

I sat on the edge of the bed, removed my shoes and slumped back. Closing my eyes, I began to take deep breaths as I slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

I was sat in the same room I had fallen asleep in. But the candles were lit and the curtains were closed. It was a little chilly and you could see as the winds picked up, creating a draft at the bottom of the door. There was a few footsteps until they stopped right out side of the door. Their was a light tap on the door and then it creaked open. The face of Gerta filled the space and she stepped inside, an ever growing smug smirk on her face.

"What do you want?" I found myself asking. But it wasn't me. I knew it was Marie.

"I." She started. "Want you to say goodbye to little Richard because he will soon be dead like your other dear brother. What was his name again?"

"Charles. His. Name. Was. Charles." Marie snarled. I felt anger bubbling inside of me.

"Oh yes, Charlie." She stated with venom. "Richard will meet some new friends to hang around with. They'll teach him a lesson."

"What has he even done to you!? What did Charles do? What did _I _do? I know I'm next anyway."

"You were born." She said as she softly closed the door over. Saying a quick goodbye, "You'd best watch your back Marie. Richard too. You won't know what's coming!"

I felt like crying. How can someone be like that in the first place. Does she not want to share her new husbands riches with his own children? Is that it? Because if it is then she has hell to pay. If she really is the ghost that is haunting this house, I will make her pay. I will use the PK to get rid of her myself.

The scene changed and I found myself watching over Marie as her and her father stood by her real mother's grave. They were in floods of tears and all alone. There was no Richard. There was no Charles. But thankfully no Gerta. She was gone and had mysteriously 'disappeared' for good.

"Dad, she's still in the house." Marie whispered. "She'll take my child dad. She will."

"It's going to be okay Marie," her father whispered back equally quiet. "We won't let her. You and I both know that."

"I'm scared dad. What is she repeats the cycle over and over?" Marie said, her voice raising higher ever so slightly.

"Calm down Marie. She will get my grandchild over my dead body. I swear! That's a promise I am willing to keep."

"Thanks dad..."


End file.
